UK’s Starmer under pressure to expel Israeli ambassador
The Israeli ambassador to the UK, Tzipi Hotovely.
An array of UK members of parliament (MPs) have urged the Prime Minister, Keir Starmer, to expel the Israeli ambassador to the UK, Tzipi Hotovely, according to Middle East Eye.
This move signals that Britain does not condone Israel’s military campaign in Gaza. In a letter sent to Starmer on August 14th from the group of MPs, the government was asked to “act urgently in the face of genocide in Gaza.”
Notably, the Labour MP Abtisam Mohamed, a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee, was a signatory of the letter. The MPs cited Britain’s “obligation” to comply with the Genocide Convention – which Britain is a signatory to, describing this duty as “clear and binding.” As a signatory of the convention, the UK must work to stop genocide “wherever it occurs.”
Hotovely is a vocal opponent of the formation of a Palestinian state, which means that many MPs could see her as an obstacle to reaching the two-state solution. Hotovely referred to the Nakba, the ethnic cleansing of Palestine in 1948, an “Arab lie.” Reportedly, Hotovely met with pro-Israel MPs throughout Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.Â
Hotovely’s diary, which was obtained by the social justice NGO, Declassified UK, under a Freedom of Information request, details her efforts to influence parliament. In 2024 Hotovely twice met Stuart Roden, a chairman of the Israeli venture capital firm Hetz Ventures, who donated more than half a million pounds to Labour ahead of its general election victory, last year.Â
Hotovely also met Johnathan Goldstein, an ex-chair of the Jewish Leadership Council that represents key Jewish groups of the UK.Â
The letter also urges the government to “enforce and support international sanctions on Israel” and support the investigations of the Intentional Criminal Court (ICC). Notably, the ICC has issued an arrest warrant against the Israeli leader, Benjamin Netanyahu. The MPs consider their intervention as “the latest escalation in a campaign that has already led to the near-total destruction of Gaza.”
Middle East Eye, X, and Maghrebi.org
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