Ed Miliband: Suffering inflicted on Palestinians by Netanyahu is stain on conscience of the world

Ed Miliband has described the suffering inflicted by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government in Gaza and the West Bank as “a stain on the conscience of the world.”

In a well-received speech at Labour’s conference in Liverpool, the Foreign Secretary also highlighted a “reset” in his party under Andy Burnham’s leadership.

He declared, “We call out ethnic cleansing by the settler terrorists in the West Bank,” and accused them of “committing ethnic cleansing.”

Miliband also doubled down on the UK’s implementation of sanctions against Israel over illegal settlements, saying: “Our decision to act mobilised the international community: country after country.” “This is how to make change happen in today’s world,” he added to applause. “Doing what is right and galvanising others to act too.”

Delegates inside the conference hall stood and cheered loudly as he defended the sanctions policy.

He added: “We will ban the import of goods from illegal settlements. We will disrupt the supply lines of British finance, British construction and British services for illegal settlements.”

He was again cheered loudly as he said:”To the millions of people in this country and indeed elsewhere who have been moved and outraged by the plight of the Palestinian people – we hear you, you were right.”

But the Foreign Secretary insisted he had no argument with the people of Israel, only with its government.

He said: “Hamas’ murderous attack on October 7th united the vast majority of the world in rightful condemnation. We stand against antisemitism wherever we find it and in whatever form. And this party will always recognise the threats Israel faces and stand emphatically against those who seek its destruction.”

Miliband continued: “Our argument is not with the people of Israel but with the actions of its government. The bonds of solidarity between the British people and those who yearn for peace in Israel and Palestine are too strong to be broken.”

But in a strong attack on Netanyahu, he said the murderous activity of Hamas on October 7 “cannot justify the suffering the Netanyahu government has inflicted in Gaza and the West Bank. This suffering is a stain on the conscience of the world.”

Miliband added: “I want to say to the millions of people in this country and indeed elsewhere who have been moved and outraged by the plight of the Palestinian people: we hear you. You were right.”

In a further defence of Burnham’s leadership, he said: “And under Andy’s leadership, we have reset our approach. We call out ethnic cleansing by the settler terrorists in the West Bank. We call out the evidence of war crimes in Gaza. We call out Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine. And we match words with actions.”

Miliband also addressed other global crises, including threats posed by Iran and Russia.

“We must be prepared to confront all the security threats that Europe and the world faces,” he said.

“We will stand up to prevent a nuclear Iran through economic sanctions. We will act against the proxies of Iran. And we will continue to isolate Iran so that they reopen the Strait of Hormuz, which is so essential to tackling the cost of living crisis here at home.”

Earlier, Miliband looked emotional as he recalled his parents’ influence and their devastating suffering under the Nazis. “Friends, let me tell you about the spirit that animates my work as Foreign Secretary—driven by two refugees, a world away from us here today,” he said.

“The first walked 100km from Brussels to Ostend with his father, leaving behind his mother and his sister, to take one of the last boats to Britain to flee the Nazi invasion. He learned English, joined the Royal Navy and fought fascism.

“He would tell stories of being at sea watching the lights of the D-Day landings and he would say it softly, but I know he always felt a deep sense of pride that he had played his part in defeating the Nazis.

“The other refugee spent her childhood in hiding in Poland. She faced experiences that no child should face—the loss of her father in a concentration camp as well as separation from her mother and her sister.”

“Labour is here to defend the principles that my parents admired about our country and that mean so much to me today,” added Miliband.

“And you see, my parents didn’t just observe a country fighting for values, they taught me that I have a responsibility to fight for them too.

“I think of it not as survivor’s guilt, but as survivor’s responsibility. Responsibility to pass on the message to the generations that come next

“That we are here to leave the world a better place than we found it.”