Since the war in the Gaza Strip began, Britain's Conservative government, like the U.S. government and in almost complete coordination, has taken a very firm and friendly stance toward Israel. But with the historic change of government in Great Britain under the leadership of the new Labour government of U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer, London is expected to enact a policy change regarding Israel the way it is conducting the war, the New York Times reported, citing two British sources.
According to the Times, the new government in London will withdraw by the end of this week the objection that the previous government submitted to the International Criminal Court in The Hague (ICC) to the request to issue international arrest warrants for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant. Under the new government, according to the report, the United Kingdom is distancing itself from the US position on the issue of the tribunal, as well as on the issue of the war in Gaza.
In recent days Israeli officials have tried to dissuade the new British government from the decision. Britain's chief prosecutor currently is visiting Israel in order to examine the issue. Israeli officials say that there will be be damage to relations between London and Jerusalem if Britain takes these steps.
The Times also reported that, last week, Britain announced that it would resume funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), after concluding that the agency had taken steps to ensure that it met the "highest standards of neutrality." This conclusion comes despite Israel's accusations that dozens of its employees were complicit in the Hamas attack on October 7. Starmer himself is a lawyer, and an expert in international law and human rights.
The outgoing Conservative government headed by Rishi Sunak submitted to the international court an objection to the request of prosecutor Karim Khan to issue arrest warrants for Netanyahu and Gallant.
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An international arrest warrant could be filed against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
(Photo: Alex Kolomoisky)
These steps, according to the New York Times, show that the new Labour government is ready to change policy and exert significantly more pressure on Netanyahu due to Israel's military operation in Gaza, which is much more in line with international legal institution than with the United States.
It is also possible that there will be a halt to weapons shipments to Israel. Analysts note that Britain's new government has not yet acted to stop arms shipments to Israel, and that government officials are still awaiting a legal review of whether Israel is violating human rights law. Starmer, the newspaper wrote, is expected to lead a very independent path and not necessarily coordinate with leaders such as French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and U.S. President Joe Biden.
A key figure when it comes to changing the policy is expected to be Richard Hermer, a well-known British human rights lawyer and close colleague of Starmer who appointed him to be the new Attorney General. Hermer, who was born into a Jewish family and is a supporter of Jewish causes, will be highly influential in advising Starmer and will be the one who will most likely decide everything related to policy toward Israel.
The war in Gaza, according to the report, puts Starmer and the Labor Party in a problematic position. Before the general election, Starmer did not want to distance himself too much from Rishi Sonak's government when it came to the war, and he also worked very hard to purge the party of antisemitic elements, such as previous party leader Jeremy Corbyn.
While Strummer expressed clear support for Israel at first, alongside calls for increased humanitarian aid to Gaza, he later called for a cease-fire. However, many of the Labour voters, especially the Muslim ones, saw this as too little and punished Labour candidates in recent elections.