THE UK Government must “urgently, officially and finally” recognise the state of Palestine, SNP Westminster leader Stephen Flynn has said.
It comes after US president Donald Trump sparked international condemnation after calling for the ethnic cleansing of Gaza, saying the region’s population should be forcibly removed and the US “take over”.
In response to the comments, Foreign Secretary David Lammy said Trump was “right” to say that Gaza is in ruins, and Prime Minister Keir Starmer dodged a question on whether he would “firmly” speak to the White House about Trump’s intervention.
However, Starmer did say that the people of Gaza “must” be allowed to return to their homes – and the Labour Government reiterated their support for a two-state solution.
Calling for the UK to recognise the state of Palestine, Flynn said Labour could not “claim to support a two-state solution if it's not prepared to recognise both states”.
The SNP said that, in recognising a Palestinian state, the UK would join a total of 144 members of the United Nations, including Ireland, Spain, and Norway.
Labour have previously committed to recognising Palestine “as a contribution to a renewed peace process which results in a two-state solution” – but declined to give a timescale on when that might happen.
Flynn said: “The continuing failure of the Prime Minister and the UK Labour Government to condemn President Trump’s dangerous plans has been nothing short of cowardly. But if Keir Starmer won’t publicly condemn President Trump’s plan, then he must take steps to stop it.
“One of the most concrete and consequential responses the UK Labour Government can now take is to urgently, officially and finally recognise the state of Palestine.
"Anyone claiming to support a two-state solution must back immediate recognition, otherwise their words will ring hollow.”
“A Palestinian state is the inalienable right of the people of Palestine, not a privilege that can be trampled upon by others.
"Westminster must not repeat the mistakes it has made throughout this conflict – where political leaders have failed to speak out and even appeared to condone the collective punishment of the Palestinian people.
“Finally recognising the state of Palestine would be a powerful and meaningful step in the right direction.”
The UK Government declined to comment, but pointed towards the remarks from both Starmer and Lammy.
Asked at Prime Minister’s Questions if Labour would communicate “concerns on these dangerous statements from the President … to the White House directly and firmly”, Starmer did not directly respond.
Instead, he said: “I have, from the last few weeks, two images fixed in my mind.
“The first is the image of [former Hamas hostage] Emily Damari reunited with her mother, which I found extremely moving.
“The second was the image of thousands of Palestinians walking, literally walking through the rubble to try to find their homes and their communities in Gaza.
“They must be allowed home. They must be allowed to rebuild and we should be with them in that rebuild on the way to a two-state solution.”
