Hamas claimed victory on Sunday after Sir Keir Starmer awarded a ‘prize for terrorism’ by recognising a future state of Palestine.
The Prime Minister declared that the UK would formally support the creation of the state to ‘revive the hope of peace’ in the Middle East.
He claimed the move was necessary to ‘keep alive’ the possibility of a two-state solution, and insisted the ‘brutal terror organisation’ Hamas would play ‘no role’ in any Palestinian government.
But Israel‘s leaders branded him a ‘modern-day appeaser’, accused him of rewarding Hamas with an ‘enormous prize’ and said he had betrayed those still held hostage.
Tories claimed the symbolic move was meant to please Labour MPs and voters. Many on the Left put Sir Keir under pressure to go further by declaring a genocide in Gaza and ending all arms sales to Israel.
Hamas hailed his announcement as ‘victory’ for the ‘justice of our cause’.
But Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu said: ‘I have a clear message to leaders who are recognising a Palestinian state after the horrendous October 7 massacre – you are rewarding terror with an enormous prize.
‘And I have another message for you – it’s not going to happen. There will be no Palestinian state to the west of the Jordan River.’
Hamas claimed victory on Sunday after Sir Keir Starmer awarded a ‘prize for terrorism’ by recognising a future state of Palestine
But Israel’s leaders branded him a ‘modern-day appeaser’, with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, pictured this month, accusing him of rewarding Hamas with an ‘enormous prize’
He added that Israel will give its response to ‘the latest attempt to force upon us a terror state in the heart of our land’ when he returns from the UN’s annual General Assembly in New York.
Other western countries including France, Portugal and Belgium are due to recognise Palestinian statehood at the summit this week, as Australia and Canada did alongside the UK on Sunday afternoon.
Mr Netanyahu had said that ‘calls for a Palestinian state’ would ‘endanger our existence’ as well as serving as an ‘absurd reward for terrorism’.
Amir Ohana, speaker of the Knesset, Israel’s parliament, called Sir Keir a ‘modern-day appeaser who chose dishonour’. May Golan, minister for social equality, told the Daily Mail: ‘Recognising a Palestinian state now means legitimising a terror entity – a reward for the modern-day Nazis who brutally murdered, raped, and kidnapped Jews on October 7. Such a move endangers not only Israel but the entire free, liberal world.’
The Board of Deputies of British Jews said the move ‘has done nothing to advance a ceasefire, free the hostages, stop the suffering of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip or advance long-term peace’.
It added: ‘It may have set those goals back by reducing pressure on Hamas and enabling them to claim recognition as the ‘fruits’ of its violence and intransigence.’
Adam Ma’anit, the British cousin of murdered hostage Tsachi Idan, said it was ‘nothing less than a betrayal of the hostages and their families’.
The Hostages and Missing Families Forum UK said: ‘Instead of confronting Hamas, Britain has emboldened it.’
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said it was an ‘absolutely disastrous’ step, adding: ‘It leaves hostages languishing in Gaza and does nothing to stop the suffering of innocent people caught in this war.’
Shadow Foreign Secretary Dame Priti Patel accused Sir Keir of ‘capitulating to hard-Left factions’, adding: ‘He lacks all moral authority as his insincere gesture on recognition is all about protecting his own position.’
Shadow Attorney General Lord Wolfson said: ‘This has nothing to do with peace in the Middle East and everything to do with peace in the Labour Party. It will achieve neither.’
Former MI6 chief Sir Richard Dearlove told Times Radio: ‘It’s a ridiculous decision to take diplomatically. It’s making it look as though Hamas has a success. I’m really ashamed.’ In July, Sir Keir pledged to recognise Palestinian statehood if Israel did not end the ‘appalling situation’ in Gaza. On Sunday, some Foreign Office web pages changed references from Occupied Palestinian Territories to Palestine.
Sir Keir condemned the ‘intolerable’ starvation and devastation caused by Israel’s bombardment in Gaza.
But he said: ‘This solution is not a reward for Hamas, because it means Hamas can have no future.’ He said his call for a two-state solution – with Palestine based on pre-1967 borders with a shared capital in Jerusalem – was the ‘exact opposite’ of Hamas’s ‘hateful vision’ and promised fresh sanctions on it.
Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy admitted that the move will not end the conflict in Gaza that has raged for almost two years since the October 7 attacks.
He told the BBC: ‘Will this feed children? No… that’s down to humanitarian aid. Will this free hostages? That must be down to a ceasefire.’
