Gaza Genocide10 July, 20262 min read
Andy Burnham Apologizes for Labour Gaza Stance, Vows More Pressure on Israel
This article is an automated aggregation of coverage from news outlets. Our editorials offer in-depth analysis curated by the NewsCord team.
Reports conflict whether Burnham apologized or expressed regret over Labour's Gaza stance. He pledges to increase pressure on Israel and pursue a tougher Gaza policy.
Burnham apologizes, pledges pressure
Andy Burnham, the Labour politician described as the United Kingdom’s prime minister-in-waiting, apologized for his party’s stance on Israel’s war on Gaza and said he will increase pressure on Israel. In a video message posted on social media on Thursday, Burnham said the “unbearable suffering” in Gaza after two years of relentless bombardment by Israeli forces is a “scar on our collective conscience,” while also saying the “innocent Palestinians, including children, continue to be killed.”
Burnham, 56, said the UK was “too slow to call for [a] ceasefire” and that “We’ve got to do more to put pressure on the Israeli government.” He reiterated his condemnation of the Hamas-led attacks on Israel on October 7, 2023, in which more than 1,100 were killed, and he criticized Netanyahu’s government as “clearly attempting to make a two-state solution impossible.”
Debate over sincerity and shift
Al Jazeera reported that Burnham’s remarks are being read as an attempt to calm angry Britons rather than a clear policy pivot, noting that he expressed regret about Starmer’s government’s stance but did not offer a direct apology for that stance. Former British diplomat Karen Ross told Al Jazeera that Burnham’s message was “merely a tepid attempt to win over Britain's Muslim community and the left,” and she said, “He should have clearly apologized for Starmer's statement that Israel has the right to prevent the entry of medicine and food into the Gaza Strip during the genocide.”
Patrick Diamond, the former political adviser to the British prime minister, said Burnham’s statement is “merely an attempt to reassure Britons angry at Starmer's behavior,” and he said he does not expect a fundamental shift in Britain’s position on Israel. Diamond also told Al Jazeera that Burnham “expressed his personal feelings,” and that it is “not clear whether he is ready for these steps or not,” because he would face opposition from the British arms market that would be harmed by a ban on exports.
What changes could follow
The Arab Weekly said Burnham wants to exert more pressure on the Israeli government over its actions in Gaza and, in an interview with the newspaper, he argued, “We need to do more, which includes looking at further sanctions.” The Arab Weekly also reported that Burnham said the UK must “strengthen our approach,” including “looking at measures to ban trade in goods with illegal settlements,” as Israel’s military continued strikes in Gaza during the wider regional conflict involving Iran and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
In parallel, Al Jazeera reported that public pressure in the UK is growing, including a YouGov opinion poll commissioned by the Council for Arab-British Understanding (Caabu) finding that 50 percent of the British public believe Israel is committing genocide in Gaza. Al Jazeera further reported that Patrick Diamond said Burnham’s remarks are “an effort to placate those voters who defected from Labour over the Gaza issue,” while warning that it remains “to be seen” whether it leads to a substantive shift in UK foreign policy.