A former Labour frontbencher has urged the government to condemn Donald Trump’s “barbaric” plan for a US takeover of Gaza as “ethnic cleansing”, in a move that risks reigniting internal party splits over the Middle East conflict.
Dr Rosena Allin-Khan, a former shadow mental health minister who ran to be deputy leader, said the government needed to express “in no uncertain terms” its disapproval of the suggestion that Gazans be resettled into neighbouring countries.
In a letter to Foreign Secretary David Lammy, seen by Sky News, the Labour MP for Tooting said the US president’s comments risked sounding the “final death knell” for the internationally-supported two-state solution, in which an independent Palestinian state would exist alongside the state of Israel.
“I would like to express my outrage and ask that you take urgent steps to prevent this, including voicing the government’s disapproval in no uncertain terms,” she wrote.
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“This is not a humanitarian gesture of compassion – it is the forced removal of a population and a plan to ethnically cleanse Gaza,” she added.
Dr Allin-Khan, who was one of the 56 Labour MPs to break ranks and vote for a controversial SNP ceasefire motion last year, cited definitions of ethnic cleansing by the United Nations and the European Union as “using force or intimidation to remove from a given area, persons of another ethnic or religious group”.
“The world intervened in the former Yugoslavia in the 1990s and roundly condemned ethnic cleansing in Rwanda,” she added. “We must meet these plans to remove millions of Palestinians from their homes, naked as they are, with the same robust response.”
She asked: “Will the government stand firm and condemn President Trump’s stated aim to take over and forcibly remove the Palestinian population of Gaza?
“Further to this, can you confirm that there will be no UK support or involvement in this disgraceful plan? Finally, will you work with the international community to support UN resolutions opposing the ethnic cleansing of Gaza?”
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Mr Trump sparked international alarm overnight when he laid out his plans for the Middle East in a news conference alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at the White House.
The US president called Gaza a “demolition site” and said the two million people who currently live there could go to “various domains”.
He did not rule out sending US troops to the region, and said the US would “develop” Gaza and create “thousands and thousands of jobs”.
“Everybody I’ve spoken to loves the idea of the United States owning that piece of land, developing and creating thousands of jobs,” Mr Trump said, adding that Gaza could become “the Riviera of the Middle East” where “the world’s people” could live.
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Mr Trump suggested that Palestinians could be relocated to Egypt and Jordan. Both countries, other Arab nations and Palestinian leaders have all opposed this move.
The US president’s comments come at an awkward time for Sir Keir Starmer, as he seeks to build a close relationship with the US and stop the UK being subject to the punitive tariffs that have been imposed on China, Mexico and Canada – although the latter two countries have since earned a 30-day reprieve as negotiations take place.
The UK government has sought to distance itself from Mr Trump’s remarks, with Mr Lammy saying the UK has “always been clear in our belief that we must see two states”.
“We must see Palestinians live and prosper in their homelands in Gaza and the West Bank,” he added.
And speaking to Sky News’ Kay Burley this morning, Environment Secretary Steve Reed said the UK’s position was that Palestinians “need to be able to return to their homes and then start to rebuild them”.
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However, he stopped short of criticising Mr Trump for his remarks, saying that he would “not provide a running commentary on the pronouncements of the president”.
Asked if he was being disparaging, Mr Reed replied “not at all” and argued that Mr Trump should be given “credit for the role he played in securing the ceasefire in the first place”.
The ceasefire between Israel and Gaza was agreed last month after more than a year of war following Hamas’s terrorist attack on 7 October 2023, which killed 1,200 Israelis and saw 250 others taken hostage.
More than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Hamas’s attack, according to local authorities.
UN officials have estimated that around 200,000 Palestinians have made the journey to the north of the Gaza Strip after Israel lifted its closure of the area following the ceasefire deal.
