Keir Starmer Suspends Free Trade Talks With Israel Over Gaza Bombardment And Siege

The UK government announced it would suspend free trade talks with Israel as David Lammy condemned the “monstrous” situation in Gaza in parliament, while Keir Starmer, French president Emmanuel Macron, and Canadian prime minister Mark Carney issued a joint statement opposing the expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza and calling the level of human suffering “intolerable.”

“- Published Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy has said Labour's initial response to the Gaza conflict was "problematic" and Sir Keir Starmer had got the party off to a "bad start" on the issue when it was in opposition”

BBC

The immediate background described in the sources was the escalation in Israel’s bombardment, siege, and starvation of Gaza, with the United Nations warning that 14,000 babies could die within 48 hours if aid did not reach them in time.

BBC

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu sought to pre-empt international condemnation by allowing “a basic quantity of food into Gaza,” and the sources also record his statement that “We’re going to take control of all the Gaza strip.”

Hyphen Online reported that at the time of the joint letter, “no food, fuel or medicine had entered Gaza since 2 March,” and it said Israel had agreed to let “a basic amount of food” cross the border after an 11-week siege.

The same Hyphen Online account said Britain froze trade deal negotiations, summoned Israel’s ambassador, and slapped new sanctions on West Bank settlers, while Netanyahu hit back urging “all European leaders” to adopt Donald Trump’s vision for ending the conflict.

Hyphen Online framed the shift as a three-way split inside Labour, quoting a backbencher who grumbled that the statement was “too little, too late,” and it also reported that Imran Hussain welcomed stronger words but blasted the “limited action” attached to them.

The same source said the government’s leverage was “limited — but real,” and it described Lammy telling the House of Commons that Israel’s behaviour was “monstrous” while warning its rhetoric was “isolating Israel from its friends around the world.”

Declassified UK

The Guardian reported that Starmer would recall his cabinet for an emergency meeting on the Gaza crisis and would urge the US president to take a tougher stance towards Israel when he met Donald Trump in Scotland on Monday.

The Guardian also quoted Emily Thornberry saying, “Netanyahu only listens to Trump, and even then only sometimes,” and it added that Conservative MP Kit Malthouse warned, “Every moment of inaction is a deliberate choice.”

BBC reporting added that Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy said Labour’s initial response in opposition was “problematic” and that Starmer had got the party off to a “bad start” on the issue.

The Guardian said Starmer would push for ceasefire talks to resume and that the deal under discussion was expected to include a 60-day ceasefire, with aid supplies ramped up, after the US and Israel withdrew their negotiation teams from Qatar on Thursday.

“Britain’s shift on Israel has exposed a three-way split in Labour Keir Starmer joined French and Canadian leaders in signing a joint letter criticising Israel’s conduct in Gaza”

Hyphen Online

It also reported that Lammy was preparing to attend a UN conference on a two-state solution in New York this week, with government sources insisting formal recognition of Palestinian statehood was a matter of “when, not if.”

POLITICO.eu reported that Starmer’s cautious approach left him “isolated,” and it quoted a Labour MP describing Starmer’s statement as “all words — no action, no further sanctions,” while another said, “I don’t think people will settle for anything less than recognition now.”

Declassified UK | Other tied the diplomatic shift to broader UK policy, saying the Ministry of Defence informed Declassified that the Royal Air Force would continue to send surveillance planes over Gaza to collect intelligence for Israel.

BBC reporting added that Lammy said the UK formally recognised the state of Palestine in September 2025, and he told the programme that “clearly those initial steps were problematic,” as he assessed Labour’s earlier stance on Gaza.