Defence Secretary John Healey has promised his Government will apply international law “without fear or favour”, in reference to the conflict in Gaza.
The minister made his pledge before MPs – including members of his own party – and warned that failing to respect the International Criminal Court (ICC) could threaten the global “rules-based order”.
ICC prosecutor Karim Khan applied for arrest warrants in May against three senior members of Hamas, along with Israel’s premier Benjamin Netanyahu and the country’s defence minister Yoav Gallant, who he alleged “bear criminal responsibility” for war crimes, including the starvation of civilians and intentionally directing attacks against a civilian population.
The UK Government had objected to the ICC’s right to seek the warrant.
“This Government is serious about the application, without fear or favour, of international humanitarian law,” the Defence Secretary told the Commons, after former Labour leader and now independent MP Jeremy Corbyn (Islington North) pressed him to comment on his approach to conflict in the Middle East.
“This Government is serious about pursuing an immediate ceasefire. It’s why the Foreign Secretary (David Lammy) has already been out to Israel to press that case.
“And on the question of arms sales to Israel – on the first day in post, the Foreign Secretary commissioned the most up-to-date assessment of the British Government through the established system that we work on the degree to which any of our UK arms export licences may be facilitating a serious risk of a breach of international law.
“He has said clearly he wants this to be a process that is as swift and as transparent as possible and he is looking hard at exactly that.”
Labour backbencher Andy McDonald (Middlesbrough and Thornaby East) said he “welcomed” Mr Healey’s approach but urged him to use “all levers” to bring peace to Gaza and Israel, including an end to licensing arms exports to Israel.
His colleague Imran Hussain said: “After the last Tory Government stood by as clear violations of international law were carried out, re-emphasising in the King’s Speech the commitment to the values of human rights and the rule of law is an important step by the Government.”
The Bradford East MP added: “If the Government doesn’t get this right, if it strays from upholding international law, then it puts the whole international rules-based order at risk and it perpetuates double standards that effectively mean one life is not always valued the same as another.”
From the opposition benches, the Liberal Democrats’ foreign affairs spokesperson Layla Moran said: “It’s now been nearly 300 days since the horrific Hamas attack on October 7 and since then hostages have still not returned home, the death toll in Gaza has reached 38,000, the vast majority being women and children, and there are of course thousands more under the rubble, left out of the statistics.”
Ms Moran called on the Government to recognise the state of Palestine “immediately” in order to send a “powerful message” to the Israeli government.
Green Party co-leader Carla Denyer warned the UK’s reputation had been “compromised” by the Government’s “refusal to clearly condemn the Israeli government’s disproportionate response to the horrific terrorist attacks of October 7 and in particular, by the UK’s continuing arms sales for use against Palestinians”.
The new Labour Government has proposed recognising a sovereign Palestinian speech in its legislative agenda, which King Charles III set out in a House of Lords speech on Wednesday.
Former Tory defence minister Sir Alec Shelbrooke questioned whether the Government would spend what it needs to on defence after a strategic defence review, also proposed in the King’s Speech.
He said: “If this review adds up to more than 2.5% (of GDP spending on defence), saying this is what we need to be able to defend this changing arena, is the government going to spend that money?”
On Ukraine, Mr Healey confirmed the Government would put forward a new package of more ammunition, more anti-armour missiles and more artillery guns for the eastern European country which Russia invaded in 2022.
“Russia is far from a spent force, and if Putin wins, he will not stop at Ukraine,” he warned during the debate on home affairs and defence.
A Liberal Democrat MP who packed away his RAF uniform to contest the Tewkesbury seat has urged the Government to heed a “renewed chemical threat” from Russia.
Cameron Thomas paid tribute to Sergei and Yulia Skripal who were poisoned with the Novichok nerve agent in Salisbury, Wiltshire, in 2018 and said: “Today in 2024, the Russian war machine deploys chemicals again on the battlefields of Europe. I do hope that the strategic defence review will give due impetus to the renewed chemical threat.”
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