Lammy says the UK WILL recognise Palestine later this month unless ‘breakthrough’ with Israel
Foreign Secretary tells MPs 'to those who say rcognition rewards Hamas or threatens Israeli security - it does neither'
David Lammy has said the UK WILL recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly later this month, unless the Israeli government announces a ceasefire in Gaza, and commits to conditions on aid and settlements.
In a statement in the Commons on Monday, the Foreign Secretary rejected claims that recognition rewarded Hamas and put Israel’s security in danger telling MPs:”It does neither”.
He added:”Recognition is rooted in the principal of a two-state solution which Hamas rejects.
“We have been clear that any Palestinian state should be demilitarised….
“We see no contradiction between the two-state solution and our deep commitment to Israeli security.”
Security, added Lammy, “comes from stable borders, not indefinite occupation”.
Lammy also repeated the findings of the UN-backed IPC who said on August 22nd that there was a famine in Gaza City.
“This is not a natural disaster,” he told MPs. “It’s a man-made famine in the 21st century”.
“I am outraged by the Israeli government’s refusal to allow sufficient aid,” he added.
Lammy told MPs that the UK continued to hope diplomacy would work in the Middle East as he called for Benjamin Netanyahu to agree to a Gaza ceasefire, increase aid into the region, and halt settlement expansion in the West Bank.
He gave a unlikely sign that he hoped diplomacy could work, ahead of the UN General Assembly meeting on September 22nd.
He also rejected claims made by the shadow foreign secretary Priti Patel that the UK was failing to pressure Hamas over the release of the hostages.
Lammy pointed to work done by the government with the Arab states and other partners in Europe and elsewhere in the globe to pressure Hamas to free the hostages immediately and give up governing Gaza.
The foreign secretary told the Commons that the UK would be assessing over the “next weeks” whether Israel had adhered to the conditions asked of it by Keir Starmer when he announced the plan to recognise Palestine in July.
But Lammy added unless there was a “breakthrough” with Israel, the UK “WILL move to Palestine recognition at UNGA later this month”.
The proposal has provoked an angry response from many in the community, who joined with the Israeli government in accusing the UK of “rewarding Hamas”.
Communal leaders argued it was insulting to recognise a Palestinian state while Hamas was still holding hostages in Gaza, and repeated the Netanyahu government’s claim it “rewarded” Hamas.
Starmer argued that recognition must be viewed as a vital step towards protecting a two-state solution and a secure Israel alongside a Palestinian state.
He also reiterated that the UK expects Hamas, a proscribed terrorist group, to disarm, release all the hostages it holds, and no longer govern Gaza.
The Israeli government appears to have hardened its position as a response, with Sunday’s Security Cabinet meeting reportedly including a response by the Netanyahu-led government to Palestinian recognition by the UK and other states.
Saudi Arabia has responded saying it will only recognise Israel if a two-state solution is achieved, while 15 countries, including nine that had not recognised a Palestinian state, also signed a statement “expressing the willingness or the positive consideration of our countries to recognise the State of Palestine”.
In his announcement, the French President, Emmanuel Macron, said that the Palestinian state should be demilitarised and accept Israel. The Canadian Prime Minister, Mark Carney, said recognition is predicated on the Palestinian Authority (which governs in the occupied West Bank) holding elections in 2026 and “fundamental reform”.
In Monday’s statement the Foreign Secretary condemned Israel for continuing to approve illegal settlements.
He said: “In the West Bank, the Israeli government is tightening its stranglehold on the Palestinian economy and continues to approve illegal settlement construction, just recently in the E1 area east of Jerusalem.
“This would erect a physical barrier to the contiguous Palestinian state, and it must not happen.”
He added: “We see no contradiction between the two-state solution and our deep commitment to Israeli security, because security comes from stable borders, not indefinite occupation.”
On the reintroduction of sanctions on Iran, Lammy said: “I regret to inform the House that Iran has not complied with its legal obligations, nor chosen the path of diplomacy, so we have had no choice but to act.
“I have long been clear that I will not allow snapback to expire without a durable and comprehensive deal. It would be unacceptable to allow this issue to fall off the UN Security Council agenda, despite the threat posed by Iran’s nuclear programme.
“But snapback is not the end of diplomacy, as (US secretary of state Marco Rubio) has also recently underlined. Iran can still meet our conditions, it can restore full IAEA (International Atomic Energy Agency) access, it can address our concerns about its stockpile and enrichment, and return to negotiations.
“Alongside our partners, I will continue to urge Iran to choose this path.”
Lammy also pledged more money for Gazans through medical aid charity UK-Med and World Health Organisation Egypt.
He said: “I can announce an additional £15 million worth of aid in medical care for Gaza and the region.
“We continue to work alongside regional partners, including Egypt and Jordan, of course, to enable the UN and NGOs to ensure aid reaches those most in need.”
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