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This is the SNP motion on Gaza to be put forward for debate in the Commons tomorrow:
That this house calls for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza and Israel; notes with shock and distress that the death toll has now risen beyond 28,000, the vast majority of whom were women and children; further notes that there are currently 1.5 million Palestinians sheltering in Rafah, 610,000 of whom are children; also notes that they have nowhere else to go; condemns any military assault on what is now the largest refugee camp in the world; further calls for the immediate release of all hostages taken by Hamas and an end to the collective punishment of the Palestinian people; and recognises that the only way to stop the slaughter of innocent civilians is to press for a ceasefire now.
This is a slightly truncated version that Labour is proposing, taken from a Politico Tweet:
This is being portrayed as an amendment to the SNP motion, but it is nothing of the sort.
The SNP motion calls for a ceasefire. The Labour motion does nothing of the sort. In particular, its motion defends the right of Israel to continue with its actions in Gaza if Hamas does not cease all its action. But, under international law, Israel has no legal justification for its continuing action in Gaza because it is no longer acting in any form of self-defence. Whilst Hamas’ actions should clearly cease, and hostages should clearly be freed, the collective punishment of the people of Gaza, which the Labour motion permits if those actions do not happen, cannot be tolerated in international law, or ethically, and yet Labour is clearly indicating that it will tolerate that continued collective punishment of innocent people who have no responsibility for what Hamas does, and that is utterly unacceptable on its part.
This is an utterly intolerable motion from Labour.
I do not support what Hamas did, or does. I will always condemn hostage taking.
But I cannot support the collective punishment of 2 million people who were not responsible for those actions.
Labour is implying that they are responsible.
That is a new low from Starmer.
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