Starmer considering sanctions against Israeli ministers over ‘abhorrent’ comments

Published

8 months ago

October 16, 2024

admin

The UK government is considering sanctioning two Israeli ministers, Sir Keir Starmer has said.

The prime minister said he was “looking into” penalising Israeli finance minister Bezalel Smotrich and national security minister Itamar Ben-Gvir.

Politics latest: Sunak tries to wrong-foot Starmer

At Prime Minister’s Questions, Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey asked if the two Israeli politicians would be sanctioned after Mr Smotrich had claimed “starving two million people in Gaza might be justified”, while Mr Ben-Gvir had “called settlers who killed a 19-year-old on the West Bank heroes”.

Sir Keir answered: “We are looking at that.”

The PM said Mr Smotrich and Mr Ben-Gvir had made “abhorrent” comments about the situation in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank.

“The humanitarian situation in Gaza is dire,” he added.

“The death toll has passed 42,000 and access to basic services is becoming much harder.

“Israel must take all possible steps to avoid civilian casualties, to allow aid into Gaza in much greater volumes, and provide the UN humanitarian partners the ability to operate effectively.”

Former foreign secretary Lord Cameron revealed on Tuesday he had been working on a plan to sanction the Israeli ministers – who he called “extremist” – over their support for blocking aid from entering the Gaza Strip and expanding illegal settlements there and in the West Bank.

Reacting to Sir Keir’s comments, Mr Ben-Gvir told Israeli media that “just as before the establishment of the Jewish state the British worked to make it impossible, now they continue to do so after its establishment in the midst of an existential war”.

He said “the days of the British Mandate” – which saw the UK govern what was then Mandatory Palestine – “are over”.

Mr Ben-Gvir added: “They do not scare me, and I will continue to act in accordance with the supreme national interests of the state of Israel only and for the people of the country.”

The UK government has announced a fresh wave of sanctions in response to violence by “extremist Israeli settlers” in the West Bank.

The measures target three outposts and four organisations that have supported and perpetrated “heinous abuses of human rights” against Palestinian communities in the occupied territory, Foreign Secretary David Lammy said.

👉 Click here to listen wherever you get your podcasts 👈

The UK has called an urgent meeting of the UN Security Council as the humanitarian situation in northern Gaza deteriorates.

Mr Lammy said the UK, with France and Algeria, requested the meeting due to the “dire” humanitarian situation in northern Gaza.

He said access to basic services is “worsening” and the UN has reported “barely any food has entered in the last two weeks”.

“Israel must ensure civilians are protected and ensure routes are open to allow life-saving aid through,” the foreign secretary said.

Mr Lammy also reiterated the UK’s “steadfast support for Israel’s security” and called for an immediate ceasefire in the region.

The US has warned Benjamin Netanyahu’s government more humanitarian aid must enter Gaza in the next 30 days or Israel could lose access to American military financing.

Aid levels must increase to 350 trucks a day and Israel must allow more humanitarian pauses and security for humanitarian sites to continue to qualify for military funding, the US has said.

Just 80 aid trucks have entered northern Gaza since the beginning of October, while 60 trucks a day went through before, UN officials said.

Politics

Washington’s second-biggest city, Spokane, bans crypto ATMs

Published

3 hours ago

June 18, 2025

admin

Washington’s second-biggest city, Spokane, bans crypto ATMs

Spokane City Council has banned crypto ATMs to curb rising scams, giving operators 60 days to remove machines amid concerns over fraud and vulnerable residents.

Politics

Archetyp dark web market shut down, but ecosystem adapts: TRM Labs

Published

3 hours ago

June 18, 2025

admin

Archetyp dark web market shut down, but ecosystem adapts: TRM Labs

The Archetyp dark web market had over 600,000 users, a total transaction volume of at least $287 million and over 17,000 listings, mainly offering drugs for sale.

Politics

Battle to convince MPs to back benefit cuts to more than three million households

Published

6 hours ago

June 18, 2025

admin

Battle to convince MPs to back benefit cuts to more than three million households

Plans for cuts to benefits which will impact more than three million households will be published today – as the government faces a battle to convince dozens of Labour MPs to back them.

Liz Kendall, the welfare secretary, has set out proposals to cut £5bn from the welfare budget – which she has said is “unsustainable” and “trapping people in welfare dependency”.

Disabled people claiming PIP, the personal independence payment which helps people – some of them working – with the increased costs of daily living, face having their awards reviewed from the end of next year.

An estimated 800,000 current and future PIP recipients will lose an average of £4,500 a year, according to a government assessment.

The government also intends to freeze the health element of Universal Credit, claimed by more than two million people, at £97 a week during this parliament, and cut the rate to £50 for new claimants.

Under pressure from Labour MPs concerned particularly that changes to PIP will drive families into poverty, Ms Kendall will announce new protections in the bill today.

Sky News understands they include a 13-week transition period for those losing PIP; a higher rate of Universal Credit for people with the most serious conditions; and a commitment that disabled people who take a job will not immediately lose their benefits.

Some 40 Labour MPs have signed a letter refusing to support the cuts; and dozens of others have concerns, including ministers.

Ms Kendall is determined to press ahead, and has said the number of new PIP claimants has doubled since 2019 – at 34,000, up from 15,000.

Ministers say 90% of current claimants will not lose their benefits; and that many people will be better off – with the total welfare bill set to continue to rise over this parliament.

To keep the benefit, claimants must score a minimum of four points out of eight on one of the daily living criteria.

Ministers say claimants with the most serious conditions, who cannot work, will not face constant reassessments.

A £1bn programme is proposed, intended to give disabled people who can work tailored support to find jobs.

Some Labour MPs have angrily opposed the reforms – which will be voted on later this month.

Last night in a parliamentary debate, Labour MP for Poole Neil Duncan-Jordan disputed the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) figures.

He said: “We already know that PIP is an underclaimed benefit. The increase in claims is a symptom of declining public health and increased financial hardship disabled people are facing.

“We have the same proportion of people on working-age benefits as in 2015. This is not an economic necessity, it’s a political choice.”

Rachael Maskell, Labour MP for York, called the proposals “devastating “. She said: “We must change direction and not proceed with these cuts.”

Disability groups say they fear an increase in suicides and mental health conditions.

The government’s own assessment forecast an extra 250,000 people could be pushed into poverty – including 50,000 children. It did not include the impact of people moving into work.

Ms Kendall was urged by MPs on the Commons Work and Pensions committee to delay the reforms, to carry out an impact assessment, but wrote back to the committee saying the reforms were too urgent to delay – and that MPs would be able to amend the legislation.