UK Labour MP quits policy role over party's Gaza stance

A British MP in the opposition Labour Party has resigned from his policy role in protest at his leader’s refusal to call for a ceasefire in Israel’s war against the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, Reuters has reported. Imran Hussain, whose constituency in northern England has a large Muslim population, said that while he still supported leader Keir Starmer’s broader agenda, he wanted to go further on the situation in Gaza.

Labour leader Starmer has so far rejected growing calls in his party for him to press for a ceasefire, saying he supports an immediate humanitarian pause to ease the suffering in Gaza.

“I want to be able to advocate strongly for a ceasefire,” said Hussain, the party’s spokesman for employment reform, in a post on X late on Tuesday night. “In order to be fully free to do so, I have tonight stepped down from Labour’s front bench.”

Labour, which polls indicate has a strong chance of forming Britain’s next government in an election expected in 2024, had previously faced complaints of anti-Semitism within its ranks under former leader Jeremy Corbyn. Starmer has sought to rid the party of its anti-Jewish image since he took over in 2020, and he has stuck to the same line as Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on the Middle East conflict, saying that Israel has a right to defend itself against Hamas.

Last week, Starmer said a ceasefire at this stage would leave Hamas with the infrastructure and capability to carry out the sort of attack it launched on 7 October against the occupation state of Israel. An immediate humanitarian pause was the “only credible approach,” he claimed. His critics say that such a pause would only allow the Palestinians to be fed and watered before Israel started bombing and killing them again.

As of 7 November, Israel had killed 10,328 Palestinians, 4,237 of whom were children, and 2,719 of whom were women. At least 1,270 children are missing under the rubble of their homes bombed by Israel.

READ: European Commissioner warns of ‘apocalypse’ in Gaza