Tobias Ellwood resigns as defence committee chair after controversial Afghanistan video

Published

2 years ago

September 13, 2023

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The chair of the Commons’ defence committee, Tobias Ellwood, has resigned from his role following criticism over a video he posted on social media.

The Tory MP, who had been the chair of the cross-party group since 2020, came under pressure to quit after sharing the clip on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, where he appeared to praise the Taliban’s leadership in Afghanistan.

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Four members of the committee tabled a motion of no confidence against him within days – the first time this measure to remove a committee chair had been used – and a vote was expected to take place by this Thursday.

But a source told Sky News the committee chair “resigned before he was pushed” on Wednesday.

In a statement, Mr Ellwood said he had made the decision with “deep regret” and was “proud of the hard-hitting inquiries” the committee had carried out.

“I believe I have a strong voice when it comes to defence and security,” he added. “I stand up, speak my mind, try to see the bigger picture and offer solutions, especially on the international stage, as our world turns a dangerous corner.

“I don’t always get it right – so it’s right I put my hand up when I don’t.”

The senior backbencher admitted to “poor communications” on his part over the video, saying it was “understandably criticised at the time and reflected poorly on the committee”.

He added: “Whilst I do believe I retained support of the majority of the committee, its dynamic and effectiveness would simply not be the same, and prove a distraction, if all in the room were not supportive of the chair.”

Mr Ellwood shared the video in July showing him visiting Afghanistan, just under two years after the country was seized back by the Taliban.

Since its return, the Taliban has reinstated bans on education for girls and introduced laws stopping women from going to work, as well as outlawing women’s beauty salons and preventing women from being in public spaces, such as parks and gyms.

In the clip, the Tory MP – whose brother was killed by Islamist extremists – said the “war-weary nation” was now “accepting a more authoritarian leadership in exchange for stability”.

He urged the UK to reopen its embassy in Afghanistan – saying: “If the EU’s embassy can open up, so can ours.”

And he said: “Shouting from afar will not improve women’s rights.”

After a huge backlash from politicians, human rights campaigners and women’s groups, Mr Ellwood apologised, saying his “reflections” after a “personal visit” to Afghanistan “could have been worded better”.

But he appeared to defend some of his initial thoughts – reiterating that “our current strategy of shouting from afar, after abruptly abandoning the country in 2021, is not working”.

Mr Ellwood argued: “My simple call to action was to see our embassy reopen again and pursue a more direct strategy to help the 40 million people we abandoned.”

It is not yet clear who will replace Mr Ellwood as the committee chair.

Politics

Crypto influencers are replacing VCs, and that’s a good thing

Published

48 mins ago

August 9, 2025

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Crypto influencers are replacing VCs, and that’s a good thing

Crypto influencers democratize early-stage investing by offering transparent, accessible opportunities that VCs keep behind closed doors for the elite.

Politics

UK, Australia, Germany, Italy and New Zealand condemn Israel’s plan for new operation in Gaza

Published

10 hours ago

August 9, 2025

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UK joins four countries in condemning Israel's plan for new operation in Gaza

The UK and four allies have criticised Israel’s decision to launch a new large-scale military operation in Gaza – warning it will “aggravate the catastrophic humanitarian situation” in the territory.

The foreign ministers of Britain, Australia, Germany, Italy and New Zealand said in a joint statement that the offensive will “endanger the lives of hostages” and “risk violating international humanitarian law”.

It comes a day after Israel’s security cabinet approved an operation to take military control of Gaza City – and concluded a full takeover of the enclave is required to end the conflict.

It marks another escalation in the war in Gaza, sparked by the Hamas attack of 7 October 2023.

In their joint statement, the UK and its allies said they “strongly reject” the decision, adding: “It will endanger the lives of the hostages and further risk the mass displacement of civilians.

“The plans that the government of Israel has announced risk violating international humanitarian law. Any attempts at annexation or of settlement extension violate international law.”

The countries also called for a permanent ceasefire as “the worst-case scenario of famine is unfolding in Gaza”.

It comes as Sky News analysis has found that airdrops of aid are making little difference to Gaza’s hunger crisis, and pose serious risks to the population – with a father-of-two killed by a falling package.

Meanwhile, France, Canada, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and the United Nations all criticised Israel’s plan for a full occupation of Gaza.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu “expressed his disappointment” with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s in phone call on Friday after Berlin decided it would stop selling arms to Israel.

In a post on X, the Israeli prime minister’s office added: “Instead of supporting Israel’s just war against Hamas, which carried out the most horrific attack against the Jewish people since the Holocaust, Germany is rewarding Hamas terrorism by embargoing arms to Israel.”

US ambassador hits out at Starmer

Earlier on Friday, the US Ambassador to Israel, Mike Huckabee, criticised Sir Keir Starmer after he said Israel’s decision to “escalate its offensive” in Gaza is “wrong”.

Mr Huckabee wrote on X: “So Israel is expected to surrender to Hamas & feed them even though Israeli hostages are being starved? Did UK surrender to Nazis and drop food to them? Ever heard of Dresden, PM Starmer? That wasn’t food you dropped. If you had been PM then UK would be speaking German!”

In another post around an hour later Mr Huckabee wrote: “How much food has Starmer and the UK sent to Gaza?

“@IsraeliPM has already sent 2 MILLION TONS into Gaza & none of it even getting to hostages.”

Sir Keir has pledged to recognise a Palestinian state in September unless the Israeli government meets a series of conditions towards ending the war in Gaza.

The UK and its allies criticised Israel as US President JD Vance and UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy met at Chevening House in Kent on Friday.

Mr Vance described a “disagreement” about how the US and UK could achieve their “common objectives” in the Middle East, and said the Trump administration had “no plans to recognise a Palestinian state”.

He said: “I don’t know what it would mean to really recognise a Palestinian state given the lack of functional government there.”

Mr Vance added: “There’s a lot of common objectives here. There is some, I think, disagreement about how exactly to accomplish those common objectives, but look, it’s a tough situation.”

The UN Security Council will meet on Saturday to discuss the situation in the Middle East.

Ambassador Riyad Mansour, permanent observer of the State of Palestine to the United Nations, said earlier on Friday that a number of countries would be requesting a meeting of the UN Security Council on Israel’s plans.

Politics

BlackRock launching a SOL ETF in first wave would be ‘messed up’ — Analyst

Published

10 hours ago

August 9, 2025

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<div>BlackRock launching a SOL ETF in first wave would be 'messed up' — Analyst</div>

BlackRock hasn’t filed for a Solana ETF, but ETF analyst James Seyffart says they shouldn’t be allowed to jump in at the last minute after other issuers’ hard work.