More than 50 British MPs demand fresh sanctions on Israel over Gaza aid obstruction - Middle East Eye
More than 50 British MPs are supporting a parliamentary motion calling on their government to take "urgent action" on getting aid into Gaza and demanding fresh sanctions on Israel.
The motion, which was tabled on Tuesday night by Labour MP Richard Burgon, notes "UN reports that tens of thousands of already displaced families have suffered damage to their shelters" in Gaza.
It says this has "been made far worse by Israel's widespread destruction of homes, drainage systems and other essential infrastructure that have left most Palestinians in Gaza displaced".
The motion further condemns "Israel's ongoing restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid, including materials needed to provide shelter, respond to flooding, and aid reconstruction", as well as its "restrictions on bringing humanitarian supplies and international staff into Gaza".
Some 65 percent of Gaza’s population, about 1.4 million people, live in tents or makeshift shelters, according to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (Ocha).
In the last week, torrential rainfall and deadly storms have flooded or destroyed tens of thousands of these tents.
Israel continues to bar aid groups from bringing supplies and international staff into the territory. The Norwegian Refugee Council reported last month that Israeli authorities were allowing just 15 trucks carrying items Israel considers to be "dual-use" into Gaza from Jordan once a week.
Ramiz Alakbarov, the UN’s humanitarian coordinator for the occupied Palestinian territory, said this week that 150,000 tents in aid lorries were stuck outside Gaza, while stocks of essential shelter and winter items inside the enclave were exhausted.
The UK parliamentary motion "calls on the Government to demand the immediate and unrestricted entry of humanitarian aid, shelter materials and reconstruction equipment".
It urges the Labour government to "use its powers under the new Global Human Rights and International Humanitarian Law Sanctions Regulations 2026 to impose sanctions on Israeli officials and others responsible for obstructing humanitarian assistance to Gaza".
The motion has been supported by 55 MPs across different parties.
Numerous Labour MPs, including Abtisam Mohamed, Andy McDonald, John McDonnell and Kim Johnson are supporting it. So are all five members of the Independent Alliance and all five Green Party MPs.
Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband published a video on Monday night, in which he said: “The intolerable humanitarian situation in Gaza is getting worse. Heavy rain and strong winds have resulted in 70,000 tents being affected by flooding, damaged buildings collapsing and more people losing their lives.
“The UK government will not stand by," Miliband said.
"We are demanding the government of Israel ends arbitrary restrictions on humanitarian access, protects humanitarian workers and provides humane treatment and basic welfare for the civilian population of Gaza.”
He added: “There are strict legal obligations that the occupying power, Israel, must obey. And here at the G7, I am pressing our partners to get more humanitarian aid in, re-inject momentum into the peace process and send a clear message to the government of Israel that their behaviour and actions in Gaza are totally unacceptable.”
