Jeremy Corbyn will host tribunal to examine UK role in Gaza war
A “Gaza tribunal” scheduled for September, which will examine the UK’s complicity in Israel’s war on Gaza, will be led by former UK Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn, according to Middle East Eye on July 17th.
Now serving as an independent MP, Corbyn has been outspoken in his criticism of the UK government’s military and political support for Israel throughout the conflict. Rights groups and international legal experts have raised concerns over alleged war crimes and accusations of genocide in the besieged Palestinian enclave of Gaza.
Corbyn had earlier attempted to introduce legislation in parliament calling for a formal inquiry into Britain’s role in the Gaza conflict — an effort blocked by the Labour government on July 4th. The bill which called for the independent inquiry into the UK’s complicity, was passed on June 4th.
The UK has continued to supply arms to Israel during its military campaign on Gaza, which has resulted in the deaths of tens of thousands of Palestinians and the widespread displacement of civilians. The UK has maintained consistent arms exports to Israel amid increasing global criticism. The Royal Air Force has also reportedly conducted surveillance flights over Gaza and shared intelligence with Israel.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) has ruled that there is a plausible case that genocide is occurring in Gaza. In parallel, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and ex-Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.
According to Corbyn’s media team, the unofficial tribunal will feature testimony from survivors of Israeli attacks, whistleblowers, legal scholars, and others.
The tribunal will be organised into four key areas of focus: The UK’s role in potential human rights abuses, the scale of destruction and civilian impact in Gaza, the UK’s legal responsibilities to stop war crimes and whether those responsibilities have been upheld.
“Just like Iraq, government ministers are doing everything they can to hide the truth,” Corbyn said in a statement. “They cannot stop the inevitable: a full and independent inquiry. We will uncover the full scale of British complicity in genocide – and we will bring about justice for the people of Palestine.”
Maghrebi.org, Middle East Eye
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