By Daniel Britton
Last week, U.S. President Donald Trump sparked global outrage with his proposals to make the Gaza Strip "the Riviera of the Middle East". Responding to the announcement, in Britain, 68 MPs have signed a letter to Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, urging the UK Government to oppose the plans, which they state amount to "ethnic cleansing".
The MPs argue that the UK cannot remain silent in the face of such dangerous and inflammatory proposals, which suggest relocating Gaza's Palestinian population to neighbouring countries whilst an external force rebuilds the territory. The letter calls on Lammy to publicly reject the plans, push for a two-state solution, and immediately recognise an independent Palestinian state.
The letter states:
"We would like to express our outrage and ask that you" [Mr Lammy] "take urgent steps to prevent this" […] "including voicing the Government’s disapproval in no uncertain terms." The letter goes on to call the President's plans "an affront to the values that we hold dear".
Underscoring pressure from within London, the letter's signatories include several local MPs such as Diane Abbott Jeremy Corbyn, and Bell Ribeiro-Addy. With 38 Labour MPs’ signatures, one in ten of the Prime Minister's party supports the letter's demands. Kier Starmer, who has sought to sideline debates on Palestine, now faces renewed internal pressure in light of this letter.
London MPs Diane Abbot and Jeremy Corbyn have signed the letter, has yours?
Government Silence:
Despite mounting pressure, the UK government has conspicuously avoided criticising Trump’s proposal. A government spokesperson reiterated Britain's support for a two-state solution, stating that Palestinians must return to Gaza, but stopped short of an explicit rebuttal of President Trump's proposal. Lammy himself commented, “we must see Palestinians able to live and prosper in their homelands, in Gaza, in the West Bank, that is what we want to get to”.
On Sunday, speaking to the weakness of the UK's response, the UN's top investigator on Human Rights, Navi Pillay, stated, "forcible displacement of an occupied group is an international crime, and amounts to ethnic cleansing". With international condemnation growing, the UK government's silence speaks volumes. Without a clear rejection of Trump's proposals, the Government's passive stance risks amounting to tacit approval.
Join us in protesting Trump's plans:
The government's refusal to explicitly condemn Trump's proposal for what it is, ethnic cleansing, is unacceptable. We are keeping up the pressure. Join us tomorrow, 14 February as we march from Whitehall to the U.S. Embassy to oppose these plans and stand against ethnic cleansing in Palestine.