Israel-Hamas war: Ceasefire in Gaza risks more violence, Starmer expected to say in speech
A permanent ceasefire in Israel and Palestine could risk more violence in the region, Sir Keir Starmer is expected to say as he defends his position on the conflict.
The Labour leader will make a speech on Tuesday calling on global leaders to work towards restoring peace in the Middle East.
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But Sir Keir will defend Labour’s calls for a humanitarian pause, rather than a ceasefire, to allow Palestinians to flee the fighting and for aid to be distributed.
He is expected to say that a permanent ceasefire at this stage could leave Hamas with the capability to carry out further attacks in Israel.
Humanitarian pauses typically last for short periods of time with the aim of providing aid and support rather than achieving long-term political solutions, according to the United Nations.
Ceasefires are intended to be long-term and usually seek to allow parties to engage in talks, including the possibility of reaching a permanent political settlement.
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IDF footage from Gaza ground operation
Defending Sir Keir’s position ahead of the speech, shadow minister Chris Bryant told Sky News: “I don’t know what a ceasefire would look like… when Hamas’s declared aim is to get rid of the Israeli state and to kill Jews, purely and simply to kill Jews.
“I don’t know how you can have a negotiation with people who engaged in the horrific attacks on completely innocent civilians, as Hamas did.”
However, several senior Labour figures have diverged from the official party line by backing a full ceasefire, including mayors Sadiq Khan and Andy Burnham, Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar and shadow ministers Yasmin Qureshi, Jess Phillips, and Imran Hussain.
The party is not likely to sack its internal critics from frontbench roles, and will instead “continue engaging” with them, shadow science secretary Peter Kyle said on Sunday.
However Middlesbrough MP Andy McDonald was suspended from the parliamentary party on Monday, after what a Labour spokesman said were “deeply offensive” remarks made at a speech during a pro-Palestinian rally.
Mr McDonald said: “We won’t rest until we have justice. Until all people, Israelis and Palestinians, between the river and the sea, can live in peaceful liberty.”
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A slogan used by pro-Palestinian demonstrators, “from the river to the sea, Palestine will be free”, has been described as antisemitic by critics, with Home Secretary Suella Braverman claiming that it is “widely understood” to call for the destruction of Israel.
But the senior Labour MP said his reference to it was part of a “heartfelt plea” for peace, while former shadow chancellor John McDonnell called the suspension “nonsensical”.
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People ‘upset’ over Labour’s reaction to war
Sir Keir has previously provoked anger in the Labour party with his position on the conflict, after he appeared to suggest in an LBC interview that Israel had the the right to cut off the supply of power and water to Gaza.
He has since claimed he had only meant to say Israel had a general right to self-defence and he was answering a previous question – though the Labour leadership has acknowledged the comments caused “upset and hurt”.
Israel began a bombing campaign on Gaza after a surprise Hamas attack which saw at least 1,400 people killed and thousands more injured in Israel, and around 200 people taken hostage on 7 October.
The Hamas-run Gaza health ministry has said more than 8,000 people have been killed in the 25-mile strip since then, with Israel also launching a ground offensive and a blockade on water, food, fuel and other essentials.
Voting is under way in local elections across England, as well as in the Runcorn and Helsby by-election.
Due to Ofcom rules, Sky News is limited on what it can report until polls close at 10pm.
The votes mark the first electoral test for the party leaders since last year’s general election.
In total, 23 of England’s 317 local authorities are holding elections, alongside the Isles of Scilly.
The make up of around 1,270 parish councils are also due to be decided.
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Follow local elections results here
Where are they and how do I vote?
And six metro mayors are up for election.
The West of England, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, Doncaster, and North Tyneside mayoralties already have a mayor in place – while Greater Lincolnshire and Hull and East Yorkshire are choosing a mayor for the first time.
Meanwhile, a by-election is being held in Runcorn and Helsby after previous Labour MP Mike Amesbury agreed to stand down following his conviction for punching a man in the street.
While this result is likely to come in overnight, most local election results won’t be known until Friday.
All voters in these elections must be over 18, and be registered.
Join Sky News presenter Jonathan Samuels and deputy political editor Sam Coates from midnight as the results start coming in. Lead politics presenter Sophy Ridge, political editor Beth Rigby, and data and economics editor Ed Conway will be taking over on Friday to report and explain what has happened.
North Carolina’s House of Representatives has passed a bill allowing the state’s treasurer to invest public funds in approved cryptocurrencies, which will now head to the Senate.
The House passed the Digital Assets Investment Act, or House Bill 92, on its third reading on April 30 by a vote of 71 to 44.
Republican House Speaker Destin Hall introduced the bill in February, which would allow the treasurer to allocate 5% of the state’s investments into designated digital assets.
The investments can only be made after obtaining an independent third-party assessment confirming that the crypto holdings are maintained with a secure custody solution and risk oversight and regulatory compliance standards are met.
New amendments allow the treasurer to examine the feasibility of allowing members of retirement and deferred compensation plans to elect to invest in digital assets held as exchange-traded products (ETPs).
The House also passed a related bill, the State Investment Modernization Act, or HB 506, with little discussion on April 30, in a 110 to 3 vote.
The bill aims to create the North Carolina Investment Authority (NCIA) to take over investment management from the treasurer.
If passed into law, authority to invest in digital assets would transfer from the treasurer to NICA, and it would require approval from its board of directors based on third-party assessments to make crypto investments.
Local news outlet NC Newsline reported that Treasurer Brad Briner supports both bills.
Arizona leads the crypto bill race
North Carolina is second to Arizona in the state-level race to approve legislation allowing local governments to invest in cryptocurrencies.
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On April 28, Arizona’s House approved two bills, SB 1025 and SB 1373, proposing different methods for the state to establish a crypto reserve.
Arizona is the only state whose House and Senate have passed crypto-related bills, which are both awaiting Governor Katie Hobbs’ decision.
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Nearly 30 crypto advocate groups led by the lobby group the Crypto Council for Innovation (CCI) have asked the Securities and Exchange Commission for clear regulatory guidance on crypto staking and staking services.
The CCI’s Proof of Stake Alliance (POSA) group argued in an April 30 letter to the agency’s Crypto Task Force lead, SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce, that staking is fundamentally a technical process, not an investment activity.
“Staking isn’t niche — it’s the backbone of the decentralized internet,” the letter said.
The letter responded to the SEC’s call for public input on whether staking and liquid staking, where crypto users lock up their tokens to earn more, should be regulated under federal securities laws.
The coalition called for the SEC to support responsible inclusion of staking features in exchange-traded products (ETPs), and “avoid overly prescriptive rules that could freeze market structures and stifle innovation in the staking space.”
The group argued that staking fails to meet the securities-defining Howey test definition of an “investment contract” as stakers retain ownership of their assets.
They added that blockchain protocols, not a staking provider’s efforts, determine rewards, and providers don’t deliver profits through managerial decisions like a company does.
The letter requested that the SEC Issue principles-based guidance similar to recent SEC staff statements on proof-of-work mining.
“In the past 4 months, we’ve seen more movement and constructive dialogue with the SEC than in the past 4 years,” the group said. “Now, the industry is stepping up with concrete principles to include in guidance — a reflection of this new collaborative approach.”
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The group argued that the existing securities disclosure regime is ill-suited for staking services, which are fundamentally technical rather than financial in nature.
Big names in support of staking clarity
The Proof of Stake Alliance includes several high-profile crypto organizations and companies, including the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), blockchain software firm Consensys, and the crypto exchange Kraken, which restored staking services in the US earlier this year.
The SEC has yet to approve a crypto staking exchange-traded fund (ETF) and delayed the decision on allowing staking for Grayscale’s spot Ether ETF on April 14.
In April, Bloomberg ETF analyst James Seyffart predicted that an Ether ETF that includes staking could come as soon as May.
Magazine: ZK-proofs unlock trillions in Bitcoin for DeFi — BitcoinOS and Starknet
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