LONDON - Israel has accused Keir Starmer of rewarding Hamas’s ‘monstrous terrorism’ after he bowed to Labour pressure to recognise a Palestinian state.
Benjamin Netanyahu reacted furiously to Sir Keir’s ultimatum to make peace with the terror group, which inflicted the October 7 atrocities.
In a major diplomatic shift, the PM said government will recognise Palestine within weeks unless Israel ends the war in Gaza and agrees to drop its opposition to a two-State solution to the Middle East crisis.
However, Netanyahu warned: ‘‘A jihadist state on Israel’s border today will threaten Britain tomorrow,’ adding: ‘Appeasement towards jihadist terrorists always fails. It will fail you too. It will not happen.’’
Speaking after an emergency Cabinet meeting on the issue, Sir Keir said the ‘terrible suffering’ in Gaza meant it was ‘the moment to act’ to inject new life into a peace process, which has been on hold since the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel.
The move is designed to quell growing anger within Labour over government’s stance on the conflict. But Sir Keir’s intervention provoked an angry response from all sides on Tuesday, seemingly satisfying no-one.
In a major diplomatic shift, the PM said government will recognise Palestine within weeks unless Israel ends the war in Gaza and agrees to drop its opposition to a two-State solution to the Middle East crisis. (Pic: BBC)