LONDON: London Mayor Sadiq Khan on Wednesday condemned Israel’s war in Gaza as a genocide, becoming the most senior politician from the ruling Labour Party to contradict the UK government’s stance.

In a report earlier this week, the UN Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Occupied Palestinian Territory said there are reasonable grounds to suggest genocide is taking place in Gaza.

The UK government has not said it believes Israel is committing genocide, and faces pressure over continued cooperation with and arms exports to the country.

“I think what’s happening in Gaza is a genocide,” Khan said. “When I see the images of the children starving — 20,000 children have starved because of the policies of the Israeli government — when I see the health system in Gaza collapsed, when I see the lack of supplies reaching people in need, when I see the famine that is man-made, when I read the interim judgment of the ICJ (International Court of Justice), and then see a UN commission report this week, I think it’s inescapable to draw the conclusion in Gaza we’re seeing before our very eyes a genocide.”

Britain had previously indicated that the question of genocide was a matter for international courts, with a case against Israel currently being heard at the ICJ in The Hague.

The UK government said it would recognize Palestine if certain conditions to alleviate the suffering of civilians in Gaza, including a ceasefire, were not met by the time of the UN General Assembly in New York on Sept. 23.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer will reportedly wait for visiting US President Donald Trump to leave the UK before announcing a decision on recognizing Palestinian statehood.

Labour MP Rosena Allin-Khan told Sky News on Wednesday: “We say ‘never again’ when we look at Bosnia and Rwanda, but here we are again, and it’s been live streamed, and we’ve all seen it. We can’t be bystanders to a genocide.”