The UK yesterday rejected Israeli criticism that it was rewarding militant group Hamas by setting out plans to recognize a Palestinian state unless Israel took steps to improve the situation in Gaza and bring about peace.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s ultimatum, setting a September deadline, prompted an immediate rebuke from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said it rewarded Hamas and punished the victims of the 2023 Hamas attack that triggered the war.
Israeli Security Cabinet member Zeev Elkin told public broadcaster Kan that Israel might give Hamas an ultimatum to reach a deal before further expanding its military actions.
Photo: Reuters
“The most painful thing for our enemy is losing lands,” he said. “A clarification to Hamas that the moment they play games with us they will lose land that they will never get back would be a significant pressure tool.”
British Secretary of State for Transport Heidi Alexander, who was designated by the government to respond to media questions, said Starmer’s move “is not a reward for Hamas.”
“Hamas is a vile terrorist organization that has committed appalling atrocities. This is about the Palestinian people. It’s about those children that we see in Gaza who are starving to death,” Alexander said. “We’ve got to ratchet up pressure on the Israeli government to lift the restrictions to get aid back into Gaza.”
Starmer’s decision follows that of French President Emmanuel Macron, who last week announced that Paris would recognize Palestinian statehood in September, becoming the first major Western power to do so, because of the dire humanitarian conditions in the enclave.
Previously, the UK and France, like other Western powers, had been committed to Palestinian independence, but as a goal that would best be achieved only at the conclusion of negotiations with Israel.
In a televised address on Tuesday, Starmer said it had become necessary to act because the prospect of such a two-state solution was now under threat.
The UK would make the move at the UN General Assembly in September unless Israel took substantive steps to allow more aid into Gaza, made clear it would not annex the West Bank and committed itself to a long-term peace process that delivered a two-state solution, Starmer said.
The warning came after a hunger monitor said a worst-case scenario of famine is unfolding and immediate action is needed to avoid widespread death.
Palestinian authorities said more than 60,000 Palestinians were confirmed killed by Israel’s assault on the Gaza Strip.
Starmer’s move “will isolate Israel more and more, but it won’t change anything on the ground,” said Azriel Bermant, a senior researcher at the Institute of International Relations Prague.
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