For UK politicians, the dilemma is how to manage instinctive support for Israel and potential domestic tensions while hoping to have a degree of international relevance in the conflict
Reuters
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak signs messages and prayers for Israel at a Jewish school in London, Britain October 16, 2023.
In Britain, the immediate response to Hamas's shocking slaughter and kidnap of Israeli civilians and military personnel was horror, followed by swift support. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak insisted that, “terrorism will not prevail,” and that, “Israel has the absolute right to defend itself and to deter further incursions.”
The Labour leader Keir Starmer, widely viewed as the premier in waiting given his commanding lead in opinion polls, was, “shocked and appalled by the events in Israel.” He added, “These actions by Hamas do nothing for the Palestinian people, and Israel must always have the right to defend its people.”
However, beyond these immediate shows of support, the conflict presents a challenge for Britain’s politicians. At an international level, the UK government has grown closer to Israel in recent years but at the same time, Britain’s ability to influence its ally and the wider conflict with the Palestinians has greatly diminished.
With Britain’s options abroad increasingly limited, it is at the domestic level that the conflict is most felt. Antisemitism related to events in the Middle East is on the rise, as are clashes between the authorities and the sizeable pro-Palestinian activist community protesting Israel’s reprisals in Gaza.
Protesters, holding banners reading messages in support of Palestinians, take part in a vigil outside Downing Street, in London, on October 18, 2023 in tribute to the victims of the Gaza hospital strike.
For both the governing Conservatives and the opposition Labour party, the dilemma is how to manage instinctive support for Israel and potential domestic tensions while hoping to have a degree of international relevance in the conflict.
For both the governing Conservatives and the opposition Labour party, the dilemma is how to manage instinctive support for Israel and potential domestic tensions while hoping to have a degree of international relevance in the conflict.
A supporter of Israel and the peace process
Britain, of course, has a long relationship with both Israel and the Palestinians. London famously issued the Balfour Declaration in 1917 and took control of the mandate of Palestine, paving the way for the creation of Israel.
During the Cold War, London put aside any hostility towards Israel for the terrorist campaign that forced Britain to leave Palestine in 1948 to become firm allies. Like other Western states in the 1990s, it accepted the 'two-state solution' proposed by the Oslo Peace Accords and has since advocated for it.
The high point came under Tony Blair when the British Prime Minister persuaded US President George W. Bush to revive the flagging peace process. However, Bush's 'Road Map to Peace' floundered like Oslo had before.
Although Blair himself would go on to become the Special Envoy for the Middle East Quartet (the US, UN, EU, and Russia), Britain itself was more marginal to the process.
Quartet on the Middle East members, former British Prime Minister Tony Blair (L), US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (2ndL), Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov (2ndR), and EU Commissioner Catherine Ashton (R) in 2011.
Since then, Britain's engagement has been muted. It continues to provide aid to the Palestinian Authority and Gaza. For example, £38mn was promised in aid to support economic activity in the West Bank and Gaza over the 2018-23 period, while a further £20mn was sent to the Palestinian Authority to help pay health and education workers.
It even stepped in to provide £7mn extra in funding to help plug the shortfall when US President Donald Trump cut Washington's contribution to UNRWA, which pays for vital services in the occupied territories.
But alongside its aid for the Palestinians, London has grown closer to Israel in recent years. Trade has increased, especially in the tech sector, with Israel now representing the fifth-largest export destination for British goods and services in the Middle East.
As the ruling Conservative Party moved rightwards after the Brexit referendum, many of its prominent figures urged more support for Israel. Priti Patel, home secretary from 2019-22, was a well-known advocate, was forced to resign from a previous ministerial job after a secret trip to Israel.
Similarly, during her brief tenure as Prime Minister in 2022, Liz Truss wanted to move the UK's embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, copying Donald Trump, which would have effectively indicated the UK's support for Israel's illegal annexation of East Jerusalem.
In another move, in 2019, the UK designated Hezbollah a terrorist organisation, something Israel had long lobbied for.
The Conservatives have not been uncritical friends. For example, in 2019, then-foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt condemned Trump's recognition of Israel's illegal annexation of Golan, while Britain has urged the protection of civilians during previous Israeli assaults on Gaza.
The UK has historically long supported Israel, but today's conflict erupted when London is led by a government even more pro-Israel than its predecessors.
The UK has historically long supported Israel, but today's conflict erupted when London is led by a government even more pro-Israel than its predecessors.
Globally weaker
Support, however, does not translate into influence. The UK is arguably also in its weakest position globally in years, with a floundering economy and a geopolitical position dented by its departure from the EU.
Indeed, the Conservatives' more overt embrace of Israel may have been related to this when acrimonious exit negotiations with the EU underlined the need for more close non-European allies.
In the aftermath of Hamas's attack and Israel's response, the UK's weaker post-Brexit position has been exposed. As one of the largest aid donors to the Palestinian Authority, the EU immediately threatened to withhold all payments in response to Hamas' actions.
While this was quickly reversed – it turned out the decision was an unauthorised action by a particularly pro-Israel Hungarian Commissioner – the move illustrated the potential levers at Brussels' disposal to influence the conflict.
When it was in the EU, London was able to influence the bloc's policies, for example, blocking support for a Paris conference on the two-state solution that Israel opposed as recently as January 2017. But now it has left it lacks such influence.
Outside the EU, it is outside the Middle East Quartet, if that still holds value, while its own aid contribution to the Palestinians is a fraction of the EU and US, who have the real external power.
One of Rishi Sunak's first actions after the conflict erupted was offering Israel military, intelligence, and security support. This might have seemed an odd proposal given Israel is not lacking in any of these and can also draw on the far greater resources of the US for all.
A handout photograph released by the UK Parliament shows Britain's Prime Minister Rishi Sunak speaking during the Prime Minister's Questions (PMQ) session in the House of Commons in London, on October 18, 2023.
But in the post-Brexit world, security and military resources are some of the few levers the UK can still offer, having lost considerable economic and diplomatic heft after leaving the EU.
Israel may well accept these offers, but more as a sign of signalling its friendship with Britain rather than any shortage or need that it can't acquire elsewhere.
Sunak has since also offered military support to Egypt to help keep the Rafah border crossing open for humanitarian aid in the wake of the bombardment of Gaza, again leaning on security offerings given the lack of other options.
One of Rishi Sunak's first actions after the conflict erupted was offering Israel military, intelligence, and security support, one of the few levers the UK can still offer, having lost considerable economic and diplomatic heft after leaving the EU.
Domestic effects
While Britain struggles for relevance and influence over the developing conflict, the war is being felt domestically. 17 British nationals were killed or missing after Hamas' attacks, and there are fears this number will rise, with over 60,000 British citizens currently estimated to be in Israel or Gaza.
Even high-level politicians are affected, with the Scottish First Minister, Humza Yousaf's wife's parents trapped in Gaza after Israel besieged the strip while they were visiting.
Back in Britain, antisemitism against Jewish community members has risen dramatically, as, sadly, is often the case during Israel's wars. The BBC reported that antisemitic incidents in the UK had more than quadrupled since Hamas launched their attack on Saturday.
The Community Security Trust (CST), which monitors such incidents, recorded 89 "anti-Jewish hate" incidents from 7 to 10 October, including six assaults and three attacks on Jewish-owned property.
Britain is home to an active pro-Palestinian movement, which has been present on the streets in recent days. On Sunday, several thousand gathered outside Israel's embassy in London, waving Palestinian flags and chanting, "Israel is a terrorist state."
In Sheffield, where the council had raised an Israeli flag to express solidarity, a gathering protested outside, and one activist scaled the building and replaced it with the Palestinian flag.
There has long been tension over anti-Israeli protests and antisemitism. Some insist that because Israel is the world's only Jewish state, protesting Israel constitutes antisemitism.
In contrast, their opponents argue there is a difference between criticising the state of Israel and targeting Jews in general. However, while many pro-Palestinian activists do not consider themselves antisemites, some of their actions have been viewed by members of Britain's Jewish community as threatening.
The daubing of 'Free Palestine' graffiti in areas of London heavily populated by Jews, is one such example. The CST noted that some were, "using the symbols and language of pro-Palestinian politics as rhetorical weapons with which to threaten and abuse Jewish people."
Even high-level politicians are affected, with the Scottish First Minister, Humza Yousaf's wife's parents trapped in Gaza after Israel besieged the strip while they were visiting.
Suella Braverman, the Conservative Home Secretary, citing her concerns about antisemitism, suggested to the UK police that harsh measures might be considered.
She stated that "Behaviours that are legitimate in some circumstances, for example, the waving of a Palestinian flag, may not be legitimate such as when intended to glorify acts of terrorism."
She added, "Nor is it acceptable to drive through Jewish neighbourhoods, or single out Jewish members of the public, to aggressively chant or wave pro-Palestinian symbols at."
Such remarks alarmed both pro-Palestinian and free speech activists, with fears that Braverman, already known for her staunch support of Israel, was effectively seeking to ban the Palestinian flag.
The police, however, responded by saying, "What we cannot do is interpret support for the Palestinian cause more broadly as automatically being support for Hamas." They added, "Abuse or intimidation that is religiously motivated will not be accepted, and officers will act when they see it."
Labour's balancing act
Labour faces its own challenges in how to respond to the war. Under former leader Jeremy Corbyn, a keen supporter of the Palestinians, Labour was dogged by accusations of antisemitism, prompting many Jewish members and several MPs to quit the party.
Since becoming leader, Starmer has worked hard to rehabilitate the party, launching internal enquiries into antisemitism, and expelling some members, including Corbyn.
A handout photograph released by the UK Parliament shows Britain's main opposition Labour Party leader, Keir Starmer, speaking during the Prime Minister's Questions session, in the House of Commons, in London, on October 18, 2023.
It was, therefore, unsurprising that Starmer chose to state his support for Israel at the very beginning of his keynote speech at the Labour Party conference on Tuesday.
This is a break from the Corbyn era, but not with the Labour tradition in general, which has long had a close relationship with Israel dating back to a shared ideological closeness with Israel's socialist Zionist founding fathers.
However, Starmer has a difficult balancing act to pull off. On the one hand, his vocal support for Israel's right to self-defence is designed to clearly show British Jews, supporters of Israel and the public in general that he is a very different leader to Corbyn, moving away from both antisemitism controversies and leftist instinctive support for the Palestinians.
But Starmer is also aware that, alongside a committed group of pro-Israel activists within the Labour party (and wider electorate) he must keep on his side, there is also a committed body of pro-Palestinians that he must not alienate if he is to win power.
For example, the Labour Muslim Network (LMN), a body of British Muslim Labour members, criticised Starmer's comments that Israel had the "right," to cut power and water supplies to Gaza, which LMN said constituted 'collective punishment' – illegal under international law.
As the conflict progresses Starmer may face similar pushback from some of his members and supporters, especially if Israel's expected reprisals in Gaza inflict heavy casualties.
Several councillors from the UK's main opposition Labour Party have resigned in the past days in protest over party leader Keir Starmer's support for what he called Israel's "right" to cut power and water supplies to Palestinians living in Gaza.
Demonstrators hold a vigil outside Downing Street in solidarity with Palestinians after an air strike on Al-Ahli hospital in Gaza, which killed more than 500 civilians.
Given Britain's international weakness, Starmer, like Sunak, knows the UK will probably have little impact on the course of the conflict, other than contributing to the wider body of international support, condemnation and calls for de-escalation, and possibly contributing to pre-existing security and aid operations.
Instead, it will most likely be in the domestic sphere that the conflict has the most immediate impact. As well as protecting and evacuating British civilians caught up in the war, the priority will be to minimise the fallout within British society.
