Diplomatic tensions between the UK and Israel are deepening after Israel’s ambassador accused a minister of “echoing Hamas propaganda”, and reiterated her rejection of the two-state solution.
The UK’s Minister for the Middle East, Hamish Falconer, said the “appalling” reports of deaths near an aid delivery centre in Rafah on Sunday revealed the “desperate need to get aid in”, in a social media post. Dozens were killed after being shot outside the aid site.
While Mr Falconer did not accuse either side of being behind the shootings, he blamed Israel’s blockade of Gaza for the chaos that unfolded at the distribution point. He called for Israel to allow UN aid agencies to resume their work in the enclave. “Israel must allow partners to operate in line with humanitarian principles and deliver life-saving aid,” he said.
In a personal attack, Tzipi Hotovely hit back, accusing Mr Falconer of "rushing to conclusions before any investigation can be made, echoing Hamas propaganda, spreading serious false allegations against Israel".
The aid was being delivered by the US and Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), which started operating in Gaza last week. It is part of a new mechanism devised by the US and Israel to distribute aid in Gaza, which they claimed was being looted and hoarded by Hamas.
But the UN and other international aid organisations have refused to work with the foundation, saying it does not have the impartiality or independence required to distribute humanitarian aid. Ms Hotovely was summoned by Mr Falconer last month over Israel’s blockade of Gaza, which led to the UK suspending new trade talks with Israel and imposing new sanctions on settlers in the occupied West Bank.
An Israeli diplomat sought to downplay the significance of the summons, describing it as a ceremonial exchange of paperwork that lasted “a few minutes”. They described the suspension of trade talks as the “UK’s loss”.
Yet tensions could continue to simmer as the UK is being urged to recognise a Palestinian state at a UN peace summit later this month, in line with French President Emmanuel Macron’s suggestion that he will do so at the talks. Successive UK governments have expressed their support for a two-state solution, with Prime Minister Keir Starmer making it a central objective of the UK’s foreign policy on the Israel-Palestine conflict.
But Ms Hotovely has repeatedly told UK media that she opposes the two-state solution. “I’m always saying that's just repeating a formula that never worked in the past, Israelis are no longer willing to jeopardise their security,” she told The Telegraph.
Mr Falconer issued a statement last week opposing the approval of 22 new settlements in the West Bank, describing it as a “deliberate obstacle to Palestinian statehood” that “further imperils the two-state solution”. The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office was contacted for comment.
