A group of 56 Labor lawmakers are going against the party line by officially calling for a truce in Israel’s war in Gaza.
Dozens of British opposition MPs have voted in favor of a ceasefire in Israel’s war in Gaza, underscoring growing unease within parliamentary ranks over Britain’s foreign policy stance.
A group of 56 Labor MPs went against the party line on Wednesday by voting in favor of an amendment to the government’s legislative program to formally call for a ceasefire in Gaza.
The proposed legislative addition, introduced by the Scottish National Party, says the UK should “join the international community in urgently pressuring all parties to agree to an immediate ceasefire” .
Even though the amendment did not pass, strong support from the left-wing Labor Party put pressure on the bloc’s leaders.
More than a third of Labor’s 198 MPs backed the proposal, including eight members of party leader Keir Starmer’s policy team who abandoned their shadow ministerial posts to voice their dissent.
Starmer has taken the same line on the Gaza war as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, calling only for “humanitarian pauses” as opposed to a complete ceasefire in Gaza.
Jess Phillips, a Labor MP who supported the ceasefire call, said she was leaving her role as shadow domestic violence and safeguarding minister with a “heavy heart”.
– Jess Phillips MP (@jessphillips) November 15, 2023
“On this occasion I must vote with my constituents, my head and my heart,” Phillips said in a letter to Starmer published on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.
“I see no way out of which the current military action would do anything other than jeopardize the hope of peace and security for anyone in the region, today and in the future. »
Divisions within labor
Growing disquiet within Labor is challenging Starmer as he seeks to form a united front ahead of next year’s election which Labor is on course to win, according to polls.
After the vote, Starmer said he regretted that some colleagues “felt unable to support this position”.
“But I wanted to be clear about where I stood and where I stood,” Starmer said.
Global pressure for a ceasefire in Gaza has intensified more than a month after the start of the war, which has killed more than 11,500 Palestinians, including thousands of children.
Israel’s air raids and ground invasion also displaced 1.5 million people and destroyed the territory’s infrastructure.
Large protests calling for a ceasefire in Gaza have swept the UK, including outside Parliament during Wednesday’s vote.
Starmer, while opposing a full ceasefire, had sought to harden the party’s position by saying that humanitarian pauses “need to be longer to deliver humanitarian aid… a necessary step for a lasting cessation of fight as soon as possible.
This amendment was supported by 183 legislators, against 290.
King Charles III, in his maiden speech on November 7, outlining the government’s next policy agenda, reiterated the United Kingdom’s unwavering support for Israel.
He said the government would work to address the world’s “most pressing security challenges,” including “the consequences of barbaric acts of terrorism against the people of Israel.”
King Charles said Britain would also help provide “humanitarian support to Gaza and (support) the cause of peace and stability in the Middle East”.