Netanyahu criticizes Starmer for ‘undermining’ Israel | World | News

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has criticised Keir Starmer for the government’s decision to suspend gun licences in the country.

In an interview with the Mail, Mr Netanyahu criticised Labour for “sending a horrible message to Hamas” by withdrawing export licences and signalling it would no longer challenge any arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).

His comments come as the Israeli government is widely suspected of being behind a series of covert operations in Lebanon that have seen electronic devices held by Hezbollah explode, killing at least 25 people and wounding thousands more.

Mr Netanyahu said: “After the Hamas massacre on October 7, the previous British government made clear its support. Unfortunately, the current government is sending mixed messages.”

“They say Israel has the right to defend itself, but they are undermining our ability to exercise that right, both by reversing Britain’s position on the absurd allegations made by the ICC prosecutor against Israel and by blocking arms sales to Israel as we fight the genocidal terrorist organisation that carried out the massacre on 7 October.”

Starmer and the Labour cabinet defended the decision to suspend arms licences, saying it was part of an ongoing review of all licences and in light of Israel’s conduct in its war against Hamas.

Speaking at the time, Defence Secretary John Healey said: “This is a government that has a duty to uphold the rule of law. In the face of the conflict in Gaza, it is our responsibility and our legal obligation to review export licences.”

“The judgment was about whether there was a clear risk that anything we provide from that country could be linked to a serious violation of international humanitarian law.”

The timing of the decision has been widely condemned, as it comes on the same day that one of the six hostages recently executed by Hamas was buried.

Phil Rosenberg, chairman of the Board of Deputies of British Jews, told Express.co.uk: “On the day these beautiful people, kidnapped from a music festival like Reading or Glastonbury and held in tunnels for 11 months, were buried, the UK has decided to send a message to Hamas that it can get away with it.”

But Mr Netanyahu rejected suggestions of any illegality or malpractice in the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) conduct of the war against Hamas.

He said: “Israel is waging a just war with just means, taking unprecedented measures to protect civilians and in full compliance with international law.

“More recently, the new British government suspended 30 arms licenses to Israel, days after Hamas executed six Israeli hostages, sending a horrific message to Hamas.

“These misguided decisions will not change Israel’s determination to defeat Hamas, a genocidal terrorist organization that brutally murdered 1,200 people on October 7, including 14 British citizens, and took 255 people, including five British hostages.

“Just as Britain’s heroic resistance against the Nazis is seen today as essential to defeating barbarism, so too will history judge Israel’s resistance against Hamas and the Iranian terrorist axis. Israel will win this war and secure our common future.”

A number of British defence experts have recently been invited to Israel to see for themselves how the country is conducting its military action against the terrorist act and the measures it has taken to limit civilian casualties.

British General Sir John McColl, former deputy supreme allied commander Europe, said the Israeli military’s measures to limit civilian casualties went far beyond anything he had seen in Iraq and Afghanistan.

But the ICC remains committed to the arrest warrants issued for Netanyahu and three Hamas leaders. The International Criminal Court’s chief prosecutor, Karim Khan, recently told the BBC that the arrest warrants were issued for both sides to “ensure that people around the world believe that the court applies the law equally based on common standards.”

Mr Khan said the ICC had reasonable grounds to believe that Netanyahu and his Defence Minister Yoav Gallant bore criminal responsibility for war crimes and crimes against humanity since October 7.^th.

The warrant requests still need to be approved by ICC judges.

But Mr Netanyahu did not hesitate to refer to the Labor Party’s announcement that it would not block any arrest warrants.

He said: “The Labour government has decided to drop its challenge to the absurd ICC arrest warrants that have been sought by the ICC prosecutor against Israel’s prime minister and defence minister.

“If arrest warrants are issued for the leaders of the Middle East’s only democracy, it will undermine the ability of every democracies in the world to fight terrorism, including Britain.”

A Foreign Office source said last night that the government remained “a friend of Israel”.

But a spokesman said that “regrettably” Israel had not responded to concerns about alleged human rights violations.

The spokesperson added: “We have been absolutely clear: when it takes military action to support its legitimate right to self-defense, Israel must adhere to international humanitarian law.

“The UK has been raising concerns about these issues for many months, as have other allies. Unfortunately, these concerns have not been adequately addressed.

“Our priority remains to achieve a ceasefire in Gaza, the release of hostages, the protection of civilians and the flow of aid.”