In a bold diplomatic move, the British government has announced that Foreign Secretary David Lammy will suspend ongoing free trade agreement negotiations with Israel and has summoned Israeli Ambassador Tzipi Hotovely following the expansion of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
Speaking in the House of Commons on Tuesday, Lammy stated: “The UK government has summoned the Israeli ambassador in response to the widening of Israel’s military operations in Gaza.” He described the decision as a reflection of Britain’s growing alarm over Israel’s conduct and its escalating humanitarian and political consequences.
“What is happening in Gaza cannot be justified and must stop,” Lammy declared. “Israel’s military expansion is morally indefensible, disproportionate, and counterproductive.”
Lammy confirmed that the UK has imposed sanctions on Israel to signal the urgent need for humanitarian access to Gaza. He warned that Israel’s actions are alienating its friends and partners and are harming its own people’s long-term interests.
“Our opposition to a war that has killed thousands of children in Gaza is not a reward to Hamas,” he clarified. Lammy went on to condemn Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich’s remarks about the need to “cleanse Gaza” as extreme and barbaric rhetoric that must be unequivocally condemned.
He further emphasised that Israel’s current war strategy “will not defeat Hamas nor bring security”. Nearly all hostages released so far were freed through negotiation, not military force, he noted, adding that expanding the offensive will not ensure their return.
Lammy warned that Britain may take further action if Israel continues its current path, and reiterated that trade talks with Israel have been suspended.
“We cannot stand idly by in the face of the worsening crisis in Gaza,” he said. The two-state solution, he stressed, remains “the only viable framework for a just and lasting peace”.
He also pointed to the alarming acceleration of illegal settlement construction in the West Bank, fuelled by settler violence and weekly Israeli government meetings to approve new outposts.
“The two-state solution is in jeopardy due to illegal settlements, with the clear backing of the Israeli government,” Lammy warned. “We summoned the Israeli ambassador to send a message to the Israeli public: this war is damaging your country’s relationship with its allies.”
“We will not abandon the two-state solution. It remains the only pathway to peace, and we will do everything in our power to end the war in Gaza. We call for an immediate ceasefire and a return to diplomacy,” he concluded.
Lammy also cited reports indicating deep frustration within the U.S. administration over Israel’s handling of the war.
In response, a spokesperson for Israel’s Foreign Ministry dismissed Britain’s pressure, stating: “External pressure will not deter Israel from its struggle for survival and security,” and took a jab at Britain by saying, “The British Mandate ended 77 years ago,” implying that Israel rejects any interference in its policies.
