LONDON: Britain’s foreign secretary said he feels “appalled” and “sickened” by Israel’s actions in Gaza, and that the UK could launch a new wave of sanctions against Tel Aviv if no ceasefire deal is reached.
It follows a joint statement from 25 countries on Monday — including the UK, France, Canada and Australia — urging Israel to end its restrictions on aid entering the Palestinian enclave, The Independent reported.
David Lammy said that only a “change in behavior” from Israel would cause the British government to abandon its plan to introduce new sanctions against it.
The Israeli military this week launched a new ground operation on Deir Al-Balah in central Gaza, which is the primary aid hub for the territory.
Lammy was interviewed on “Good Morning Britain” on Tuesday, a day after releasing the joint statement with his 24 counterparts.
He was asked what steps the government would take should Israel fail to reach a ceasefire deal with Hamas.
“Well, we’ve announced a raft of sanctions over the last few months,” he said.
“There will be more, clearly, and we keep all of those options under consideration if we do not see a change in behavior and the suffering that we are seeing come to an end.
“It’s important that we continue to work with international partners if we are to have the maximum result. But what I want to see is a ceasefire and it’s my assessment that once the Knesset rises on July 28, we are more likely to see a ceasefire come into effect.”
Last month, Lammy announced British sanctions against two senior far-right members of the Netanyahu government, Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, both of whom have repeatedly incited violence against Palestinians.
Monday’s 25-nation joint statement condemned Israel and the US’s aid model for Gaza, which was designed to replace much of the existing UN aid system in the enclave.
The organization at the center of the new model, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, has faced intense criticism after scores of Palestinians were shot dead by Israeli forces at its designated aid sites.
Lammy told “BBC Breakfast” about his reaction to events in Gaza: “I feel the same as the British public: appalled, sickened. I described what I saw, yesterday in parliament, as grotesque.”
He added: “These are not words that are usually used by a foreign secretary who is attempting to be diplomatic, but when you see innocent children holding out their hand for food, and you see them shot and killed in the way that we have seen in the last few days, of course Britain must call it out.”
Israel’s war in Gaza has killed more than 55,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.
