UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy has issued a strong condemnation of recent Israeli attacks in Gaza on starved Palestinians waiting in aid lines, calling the shooting of civilians waiting for humanitarian aid "disgusting" and demanding accountability from Israel for these killings.
In remarks reported by The Guardian on Saturday, Lammy said, “Shooting civilians waiting for aid in Gaza is disgusting, and Israel must hold those involved accountable.”
The Foreign Secretary's comments come amid growing international scrutiny of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza, where humanitarian conditions continue to deteriorate.
At least seven more Palestinians, including a child, died of Israeli-enforced mass starvation and malnutrition in Gaza on Saturday, according to the Health Ministry in the besieged enclave.
The new deaths, recorded in the past 24 hours, brought the total number of Israeli-enforced starvation-related fatalities since October 2023 to 169, including 93 children, the ministry said in a statement.
Lammy also expressed a desire to visit the besieged enclave. “I would like to visit Gaza as soon as I am able to enter it,” he said.
Palestinian statehood
Lammy emphasised that the recognition of a Palestinian state remains a powerful diplomatic tool.
“Recognising the State of Palestine is a card that can only be played once,” he noted, underlining the strategic importance of timing and consensus in international diplomacy.
Earlier this week, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the UK would recognise the state of Palestine in September unless the Israeli government takes substantive steps to end the "appalling situation" in Gaza and meets other conditions.
The Foreign Secretary reaffirmed the UK government’s support for a two-state solution, describing it as "the only viable alternative" to resolve the long-running Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
He also criticised those who advocate for a “Greater Israel” that excludes the possibility of a sovereign Palestinian state.
“There are voices determined to see a ‘Greater Israel’ without a Palestinian state, and I oppose them,” he said.
Lammy condemned the recent surge in settler violence in the occupied West Bank.
“Settler attacks are criminal and illegal acts that we condemn and seek to impose sanctions on,” he stated, in one of the strongest indications yet that the UK may consider punitive measures against individuals involved in such actions.
