Why the West needs to call Israel to account
JVL Introduction
Freelance journalist David Keys welcomes Starmer’s statement about the recognition of Palestine conditional on Israel meeting certain wide-ranging conditions about ending the war on Gaza.
Leaving aside some strong reservations about conditional recognition (see below), we are very happy to circulate this powerful compilation of ten arguments as to why “Israel’s ongoing behaviour is so damaging to Britain and the western world – and why tough action is needed in order to have any chance of convincing Israel to change direction”.
Keys suggests a useful range of sanctions that could be implemented if the UK government is serious about its demands on Israel being met.
This web editor does not think that recognition of Palestinian statehood should be a bargaining chip.
It is a moral and legal right and we have long called for it to be implemented immediately and unconditionally.
Is Starmer really saying that if Israel meets all the conditions he has set out, including commiting to a ‘two state’ solution, the UK would then refuse to recognise the state of Palestine, the very state that Israel has now committed itself towards!
RK
This article was originally published by North East Bylines on Wed 30 Jul 2025. Read the original here.
How Israel’s Gaza War is harming Britain’s and the West’s interests – and what can be done about it
Yesterday, for the very first time, Keir Starmer began to put more serious pressure on Israel to stop its war on Gaza and to commit to a peaceful future
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“Simply threatening to recognise Palestine is unlikely to work on its own.” Very true but it would be a start, and better that the support for Israel which has to date been the mark of his personal preference. I give KS no credit for what he has done on Gaza because it has been preciously little and only after continuous pressure. It’s a shame his training as a ‘Human Rights’ lawyer had been forgotten well before he became leader or the party formerly known as Labour.