Keir Starmer snubs Anas Sarwar over Gaza 'ceasefire' call and claims it would embolden Hamas

dailyrecord.co.uk:

Keir Starmer has ignored Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar’s call for a ceasefire in the deadly war in Gaza.Starmer said this outcome would result in terrorist group Hamas being “emboldened” in the Palestinian territory.The two leaders, who are close allies, have clashed over Israel’s military response in Gaza to the slaughter of over 1,000 Jews by Hamas.The UK leader was heavily criticised after he suggested to LBC that Israel could withhold water and electricity from the people of Gaza.Sarwar said this move would breach international law and Starmer then clarified by saying he was not calling for a blockade on vital supplies.However, while Sarwar has backed a ceasefire, Starmer has refused to go this far.In a speech, he said: “While I understand calls for a ceasefire at this stage, I do not believe that it is the correct position now for two reasons.“One, because a ceasefire always freezes any conflict in the state where it currently lies.

And as we speak, that would leave Hamas with the infrastructure and the capabilities to carry out the sort of attack we saw on October 7.“Attacks that are still ongoing.

Hostages who should be released still held.“Hamas would be emboldened and start preparing for future violence immediately.”In an interview with the Record, Sarwar was asked if the LBC interview had been hurtful to Muslims.He said: “It was hurtful and I think he would accept it was hurtful.

He accepts that it is not his position, and it never was his position. But [that] language, framed as it was, did cause hurt.“Perhaps that could have been, and should have been, clarified sooner.”He added: “I do think that one video was allowed to go viral and it perhaps should have been nailed down and rebuffed much, much sooner.