By Philip Bradfield

Copyright newsletter

Daniel O’Dowd of the Ireland Israel Alliance was speaking after The Times newspaper reported that Sir Keir Starmer plans to recognise Palestinian this weekend. The Prime Minister said in July that he planned to recognize a Palestinian State if Israel does not meet conditions – including agreeing to a ceasefire, a two-state solution to peace, and halting annexations in the West Bank. The current Israel-Hamas war in Gaza began on 7 October 2023 when Hamas killed 1,200 Israelis and kidnapped 250 hostages. Israel’s attempt to rescue the hostages and destroy Hamas has resulted in the deaths of 65,000 Gazans, according to Hamas. This week a UN Commission reported that Israel is committing “genocide” in Gaza – a claim rejected by the UK and Israel. When he announced his plans to recognise a Palestinian state in July, Sir Keir also laid out conditions for Hamas. “They must immediately release all the hostages, sign up to a ceasefire, disarm and accept that they will play no part in the government of Gaza,” he said. “We will make an assessment in September on how far the parties have met these steps.” Asked by the News Letter if Number Ten had assessed how Hamas had met these steps, the Prime Minister’s spokesman referred the question to the Foreign Office, which has yet to comment. Classed as a terrorist group by the EU, UK and US, Hamas has vowed to carry out October 7 again when it can and is formally dedicated to destroying Israel and replacing it with an Islamic state. Mr O’Dowd said: “Can we imagine if during the height of the Troubles, America had come out and declared they would recognise a United Ireland – unless the British gave into the IRA’s demands? “Well, that is exactly what Kier Starmer and his historically unpopular government have done.” While placing stringent conditions on Israel, Mr O’Dowd said that the Prime Minister was placing “no conditions” on Hamas. “This is a reward for terrorism – plain and simple, but with the added twist of trying to blame the entire affair on the victim.” Meanwhile, the Deputy Leader of the Belfast Jewish Community, Michael Black, has criticised a resolution from the UN Security Council on Thursday calling for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in Gaza; he said it placed no requirement on Hamas to halt attacks against Israel outside Gaza – which it has vowed to do. However the resolution was vetoed by the US representative. She too warned that the resolution demanded a ceasefire that would leave Hamas in power and allow it to regroup. Gaza’s humanitarian suffering, she said, is the result of Hamas’s actions; Israel, by contrast, works daily to deliver aid to civilians who need it rather than to sustain Hamas. She concluded by demanding that Hamas release all hostages and surrender immediately. Michael Black, Deputy Chair of the Belfast Jewish Community added: “A UN resolution calling for a permanent ceasefire would only allow Hamas and other terrorist organisations to regroup. It doesn’t protect Israel from further attacks and innocent Gazans from Hamas’s jackboot.”