David Lammy calls for Gaza ceasefire

David Lammy is visiting Israel and the Palestinian Territories – his first trip to the Middle East as Foreign Secretary. On his meeting list so far are Benjamin Netanyahu, Palestinian Authority prime minister Mohammad Mustafa and relatives of the hostages taken on 7 October. The Foreign Secretary met Israeli President Isaac Herzog this morning.

Of all the foreign policy challenges facing Keir Starmer’s government, Israel/Palestine is the most contentious internally. Since 7 October, the question of how much support to show either side has divided the Labour party. Unhappiness over Starmer’s initial delay to back calls for a ceasefire as well as comments about Israel’s right to self defence saw the Labour leader suffer several frontbench resignations. In the general election, there were signs of a voter backlash: a number of pro-Gaza independents ousted Labour incumbents.

Lammy’s message for this trip is simple: it’s time for an immediate ceasefire. It echoes calls Keir Starmer made to both Netanyahu and Mustafa on entering 10 Downing Street.