“Cease-fire Now:” Revolt in UK Labour

Written By: Mike Smith - Date published: - 43 comments
Categories: israel, Palestine, Russia, uk politics, us politics, war, Zionism

56 UK Labour MPs including 8 front-benchers defied the Leader and the Whip and voted for a SNP amendment to the King’s speech calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza.

Karma for Starmer, who previously had to row back from saying Israel had a right to refuse food and water to Gaza.

Revulsion against Israel’s actions is world-wide, with huge demonstrations for peace in Palestine in London last week. One of the rebel MPs said her inbox was full.  The biggest name to leave the front bench was Labour-to-the-core Jess Phillips, who said in her resignation letter to Starmer:

“On this occasion I must vote with my constituents, my head, and my heart which has felt as if it were breaking over the last four weeks with the horror of the situation in Israel and Palestine. … I can see no route where the current military action does anything but put at risk the hope of peace and security for anyone in the region now and in the future.”

Starmer issued a statement in his defence:

“Alongside leaders around the world, I have called throughout for adherence to international law, for humanitarian pauses to allow access for aid, food, water, utilities and medicine, and have expressed our concerns at the scale of civilian casualties.
“Much more needs to be done in this regard to ease the humanitarian crisis that is unfolding in Gaza.
“And in addition to addressing the present, every leader has a duty not to go back to a failed strategy of containment and neglect, but to forge a better and more secure future for both Palestinians and Israelis.
“I regret that some colleagues felt unable to support the position tonight. But I wanted to be clear about where I stood, and where I will stand.
“Leadership is about doing the right thing. That is the least the public deserves. And the least that leadership demands.”

Wish-list weasel words in my view: “more needs to be done,” “forge a better future.” And definitely not leadership – no calling to account. Many more innocent civilians, women, children and babies will die if the Israeli killing does not stop.

But the pot is starting to heat up. the UN Security Council just passed a similar resolution 12 -0. The US, UK and Russia all abstained; the former two because it did not condemn HAMAS, and Russia because it did not call for a ceasefire. Dissent from the official view is also showing up in the US government, Israel’s main supporter and armourer. 500 officials from across 40 agencies sent a letter to President Biden:

“We call on President Biden to urgently demand a cease-fire; and to call for de-escalation of the current conflict by securing the immediate release of the Israeli hostages and arbitrarily detained Palestinians; the restoration of water, fuel, electricity and other basic services; and the passage of adequate humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip,” the letter said, according to New York Times.

What is different in this day and age is that as the killing is not hidden, all the world can see, and is increasingly expressing its revulsion in protest. That is only going to grow.

 

43 comments on ““Cease-fire Now:” Revolt in UK Labour”

Comment numbers have changed to permanent references. Older quoted numbers may no longer identify the same comment.

  1. 1

    In Australia , Albanese long before he became PM was 'unabashedly pro palestinian'

    https://www.australianjewishnews.com/pro-palestinian-albanese-is-okay-say-communal-leaders/

    Now its lockstep with US and Israel. To me its clear the US has issued a fatwa to its western government allies in the words of George W Bush- You are either for us or against us.

    Even the fine nuance in language of what can or cant be said of about situation is dictated by Israel and its supporters

    1. 1.1

      ZOG is everywhere …

      I would guess Albanese is no less anti settlement of occupied WB now, but does not see any good for Palestine or Palestinians via the path chosen by Hamas.

      1. 1.1.1

        Israel has had many PMs who themselves were terrorist militia leaders. Ben Gurion the first PM – was a political leader , but like Sinn Feins Gerry Adams seemed to have the power to turn the terrorism raids on and off.

        But of course Arabs are different, that they arent allowed to take the path of extreme violence. No siree

  3. 3

    What the IDF butchers (incubators turned off!!) are up to in Gaza indeed cannot be hidden. Surely some in the international community, or NGOs will attempt to break the Gaza blockade and deliver aid.

    If it is not already too late, the rest of us need to ban Israeli products from our homes, support workers exercising trade bans, support international BDS and cultural boycotts. Sod the Israeli military and State–they have over reacted to such an extent this time to ever come back. BRICS in terms of states, and much of the worlds people have had enough of these murderous thugs.

  4. 4

    Any word If your side are going to release the hostages and the murderers of October 7 th will be brought to justice ?

    1. 4.1

      Any word if your side is going to release the men women and children who have been held in Israeli jails without charge for months, if not years?

    4. 4.4

      The people who are brokering that are the Qatari government.

      They are the most adept diplomatic players in the Middle East and have been for years. It is impressive soft power across multiple fields.

  5. 5

    Hamas hasn't promised to cease fire. It doesn't want to. Neither Egypt nor Jordan nor Saudi Arabia are lifting a finger to help Palestinians to move as refugees or indeed as anything.

    But sure write a joint letter.

    1. 5.1

      If Nasrallah's speech wasn't clear, Tehran intends sitting this one out, too.

      @IranIntl_En

      Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei delivered a clear message to Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh when they met in Tehran in early November, three senior officials told Reuters: You gave us no warning of your Oct. 7 attack on Israel and we will not enter the war on your behalf. Khamenei told Ismail Haniyeh that Iran would continue to lend the group its political and moral support, but wouldn't intervene directly. He also pressed Haniyeh to silence those voices in the Palestinian group publicly calling for Iran and its powerful Lebanese ally Hezbollah to join the battle against Israel in full force.

      https://twitter.com/IranIntl_En/status/1724801629504086099

      1. 5.1.1

        Even Lebanon's Hezbollah are sitting this one out.

        Egypt appears to be building an even tougher defensive line and massive border gate at Rafa. And Egypt is the Arab-dominant neighbour right next door. Impressive the scale of Hamas' failure.

        Any time Hamas wants to help, they could always send some of the billions in aid they've stolen, while they order their drinks from their Qatar hotel balconies.

    2. 5.2

      Somewhat reminiscent of the Jew's oen plight many years ago

      Familiar with the Evian Conference?

      “At a time before Auschwitz, when Adolf Hitler teased other nations, saying, in effect, if you care so much about Jews, why not open your doors to them, the response from the countries in attendance, with the notable exception of the Dominican Republic, was a resounding ‘no,’” Harris wrote in an email.

      https://www.washingtonpost.com/history/2023/07/15/holocaust-hitler-fdr-jewish-evian-conference/

      1. 5.2.1

        Yes, and the Jews learned from this.
        Subsequent to the establishment of Israel, there has always been an open door to Jews expelled from other countries. Even where the resulting social and cultural pressure has been …. uncomfortable. And we're not talking, thousands, here, there have been hundreds of thousands to accommodate.

        Remind me of the equivalent process for the Palestinian Arabs in the much publicised refugee camps? Not one single Middle Eastern country has opened their borders for re-settlement. It might almost appear that they prefer to retain the camps as a PR exercise and to maintain pressure on Israel.

        It's all very well to trumpet the 'right of return' – but most people in the camps would actually prefer to have a decent life now, in another country; rather than live a transient existence, with little hope for the future, in the 'hope' that they one-day might return to the country their grandparents left.

      2. 5.2.2

        In 1947 there were 1.3 million non-Jewish people living in what is now Israel.

        In 2023 there are 2.6 million non-Jewish people living in what is now Israel.

        Would you like to see the German figures?

        Bandying around more tiring false holocaust equivalences doesn't do you any good.

    1. 6.1

      I'm surprised that you would take the Israeli military's word for gospel .They do have skin in the game

      Australian branch of MSF would have more credibility in my mind

      https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/world/502561/al-shifa-doctors-group-rejects-israeli-evidence-of-hamas-activities-at-gaza-s-main-hospital

      I don't know either why it is taking so long to search the underground bunker and tunnels at El Shifa, the Israelis buit that themselves and would have explicit plans

          1. 6.1.1.1.1

            Why do people give so much credence to “evidence” Israel and the US provide as justification for their ongoing destruction of Palestinian health facilities

            When Russian “intelligence” says the same, what a fuss! What squeals of outright condemnation and scorn

            Im amazed that after decades of lies US intelligence is believed so implicitly
            Even if it was true, and scores of Hamas fighters managed to escape the building minus their “emergency grab bags”never to be seen again , does it justify the patients now dying of dehydration, the dying premature babies, the sniping of medicos trying to pass between buildings, the destruction of oxygen supplies ?.
            This is looking more and more like the final solution
            this time with cheerleaders from the west

            1. 6.1.1.1.1.1

              Well at least you're asking a useful question.

              All countries with borders to Israel have determined that the answer to your question is:

              yes.

            2. 6.1.1.1.1.2

              Agree Francesca. I still recall the photos from 2014 when Israeli settlers (colonists) were depicted at night sitting on sofas on ridges, on the piss, cheering on IDF air bombing attacks on Gaza.

              These Israeli butchers have indeed over reacted to the point of eradication of Palestinians being in the frame. Anyway, the solidarity actions seem to be growing by the day and intense BDS needs to be applied.

          2. 6.1.1.1.2

            So far you've cited Medicines Sans Frontieres who are paid to keep their head down and neutrally deliver medical care, then TRT which is explicitly directed by the Turkish PM's department of state.

            So let's go with moderated MSM sources Al Jazeera:

            https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/11/16/what-has-israel-found-in-gazas-al-shifa-hospital

            Associated Press:

            https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-hamas-war-shifa-hospital-ce8fda9821a011a6cb6e4a3df5c90916

            BBC:

            https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67414091

            And another:

            https://www.business-standard.com/world-news/idf-releases-critical-evidence-of-hamas-hand-in-gaza-hospital-explosion-123101800480_1.html

            Now it may well be that all of the MSM scrutiny is wrong, that it's not a command centre but just a place where Hamas militants hang for weeks with a whole lot of ammunition and guns … somewhere inside a large hospital.

            But let's not pretend that Hamas don't know what they're doing.

            1. 6.1.1.1.2.1

              None of those sources provide any proof whatsoever .They're all "Israel says"…."The IDF claims" …"The white house " etc

              Where are the independent sources?

              Now that you've discounted and impugned MSF ( and incidentally , they would say nothing if they were really concerned to keep their heads down), who's left ?

              1. 6.1.1.1.2.1.1

                Just inhale for a bit while everyone finishes being impugned or whatever.

                There aren't fully neutral sources right now in the middle of a war. The MSM are doing their job so far. Give it two weeks and most of this will be over and we can see who's got clearer facts.

        2. 6.1.1.2

          There has not been a contrarian imho of Ad’s like posting on The Standard since Te Reo Putake–aka–“TRP” & “The Voice of Reason”–a chap I have long known in the non digital world.

          The thing with contrarianism is that it is often the flip side of opportunism, and certainly fits with post modernist philosophy. Opportunists are never wrong…because there is always squiggle room…

          If Hamas have facilities anywhere in Gaza, why might that be, do you think? I don’t intrinsically support Hamas (apart from them opposing the unjust Israeli colonists) because of the religious component and the undemocratic nature of their armed attacks…but…anyone with a class left world view would know the reality of Gaza and the West Bank and the Israeli Apartheid State and IDF Butchers.

          It is an asymmetrical attack on a population oppressed and abused for 75 years, bank rolled in the billions! no less, by US Imperialism.

        3. 6.1.1.3

          Mind supplying a link re the independent verification?

          The link you gave points to various unspecified intelligence agencies .What is your independent source?

          Honestly, don't bother if it's from the White house.Declassifying?

          What bullshit!!

          2. 6.1.1.3.2

            https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/biden-says-gaza-hospitals-must-be-protected-2023-11-14/

            https://thehill.com/policy/defense/4309367-pentagon-intelligence-hamas-gaza-hospitals/#:~:text=The%20Pentagon%20on%20Tuesday%20shared,for%20combat%20and%20military%20operations.

            https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/14/politics/white-house-hamas-al-shifa/index.html

            Useful interview from Tapper to US officials here:

            https://edition.cnn.com/2023/11/13/politics/al-shifa-hospital-us-intelligence/index.html

            I would prefer that the MSM continued to mediate White House briefings for me, since I don't confess any qualifications to interpret intelligence briefings. However you can check out the precise wording here in the White House going out this far on a limb for this, here's the transcript from the press briefing:

            https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/press-briefings/2023/11/14/press-gaggle-by-press-secretary-karine-jean-pierre-and-nsc-coordinator-for-strategic-communications-john-kirby-en-route-san-francisco-ca/

              1. 6.1.1.3.2.1.1

                It's like talking to an anti-vaxxer.

                Mainstream news companies that I have cited can certainly be wrong but they do have systems to decrease that risk. Also they were at the White House briefing and I wasn't.

                We’ll only need 2 weeks for a lot of the facts on the ground to get clearer.

                1. 6.1.1.3.2.1.1.1

                  Good to see you've already walked back your original

                  "It's already been independently verified and the US have declassified their sources to prove it."

                  1. 6.1.1.3.2.1.1.1.1

                    Yes.

                    A similar official obscuration occurred more locally a week ago. A Melbourne store for an independent burger chain had a fire which started in the early hours

                    The Police said there no suspicious circumstances

                    It was in a Jewish area- South Caulfield- and the chain is operated by a Palestinian-Australian . various demonstrations and counter demonstrations occurred nearby.

                    A day later video footage of two hooded men breaking into the store appeared , with a 'flash' appearing just as they left and the store was gutted.

                    The police now said the fire was arson but not political connected – yeah right

                    'official sources' can be manipulated like anything else

                    1. 6.1.1.3.2.1.1.1.1.1

                      Thanks Ghost

                      Here’s some more IDF evidence.
                      Personally, I’m waiting for them to find Hitler’s passport

                      Why would they need to lie so blatantly?

                      They’re in the process of turning Gaza into an uninhabitable wasteland for the Palestinians .”;A land without people , a people without land”

                  2. 6.1.1.3.2.1.1.1.2

                    You were provided with the US White House sources as you requested.

                    If you really believe your intelligence sources are better than those available to the US intelligence community and the fact checkers within all mainstream news outlets, go for it.

                    1. 6.1.1.3.2.1.1.1.2.1

                      Comprehension problems?

                      The kids today!
                      From my reply above:
                      “Honestly, don’t bother if it’s from the White house”

                      I most certainly didn’t request a WH source
                      The IDF even less so if their “evidence” found fake by France24 is being relied on

                    1. 6.1.1.3.2.1.1.1.3.1

                      Thanks

                      From your link :

                      Israel has released video today of what it claims is a Hamas tunnel on the grounds of Al-Shifa hospital. NBC News cannot independently verify that claim. The announcement comes after Israel faced widespread condemnation for its raid on Gaza’s largest hospital. NBC News’ Raf Sanchez reports.

  7. 7

    All sourced from the White House briefing

    And you consider this to be the gospel truth ?!!

    Like talking to a Bible bashing evangelist

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