Israel/Gaza

Lord Leigh of Hurley Excerpts

Tuesday 24th October 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Leigh of Hurley (Con)]

My Lords, there is a prayer said in my synagogue and others at least once in every service by the whole community, and particularly by those in mourning:

“May He who makes Peace in His high places, may He make Peace for us, for all Israel and all mankind”.


It is pretty much the last prayer of the service, when we do not pray for a better quality of life, for happiness or for material success: we pray for peace, which is the ultimate gift God can give. I suspect there is a similar thread in other religions, not least the Muslim religion, as my noble friend Lord Ahmad said in his opening speech.

Before discussing Israel, I do, of course, refer to the register of interests, which discloses my close connections with Israel and, in particular, Jerusalem.

It must be clear to all right-minded people that Israel has the right and duty to ensure peace for all its citizens. It is now clear that the only way to achieve that, as the Prime Minister said yesterday, is the termination of the power of Hamas. Every other route has failed. Israel withdrew all its settlements in Gaza, left the opportunity to continue a successful agricultural industry, left the foundations of an airport and a sea port, and provided free electricity, but Hamas killed its opponents and then would not let its people benefit from anything it regarded as tainted by Israel.

To understand Hamas, you have to listen to Mosab Hassan Yousef, the son of the founder of Hamas. He spent years in an Israeli prison, and now explains to the world that Hamas has only one objective, which is to enrich and empower itself, even at the risk of its own people. One has to ask how human beings can physically commit the atrocities that Hamas perpetrated a couple of weeks ago. Munira Mirza, writing in the New Statesman, explains it in part as the export of radical Islamism from Iran, which has a dogma to dehumanise non and ex-Muslims, treating women as lesser beings, and encouraging violent hatred of Jews. As she says, most Muslims do, of course, see through this, but a very small number have allowed themselves to be indoctrinated and brainwashed by fanatics.

There must be consequences of this evil perpetrated by Hamas on innocent Jews and innocent Muslims, so what do we need to do? First, we now need to proscribe the IRGC. I voted against the Government earlier this year for only the third time in 10 years. I did that with a heavy heart. It was during a debate on the security Bill, when there were efforts to enable legislation to be passed for the proscription. At the time, the Home Office was, I believe, in favour, but the Foreign Office claimed that the US Government did not want us to do this, as we would lose our embassy in Tehran. The position has now changed. I urge the Minister not to make me vote against my Government again. Will he please explain to us why our security services and the BBC took so long to confirm that the missile that landed near the al-Ahli hospital was not Israeli? Have we learned the lesson not to trust briefing from Gaza, but to know that the Israelis have a track record of telling the truth and undertaking proper investigation?

Secondly, we need to properly police the demos in the UK, which are clearly inciting violence. Further, I have seen the manual from Palestinian Action Underground with instructions on how to commit offences on British businesses supplying Israel. It even has its own website up and running. This needs to be closed.

Thirdly, we need to press Qatar to do more to secure the release of the hostages and reduce the violence. Lastly, we need to support Israel when it eventually enters Gaza to find these evil people, who will otherwise seek to kill again and are still sending rockets to Israel, even today into Tel Aviv.

As the international lawyer Natasha Hausdorff has explained, we need to be clear that it is entirely within international law for Israel to do what it is doing now, and what it needs to do: to enter Gaza, not supply electricity—which it had been giving freely to Gaza—and not allow in any fuel, which would only be used to make rockets. Of course, the leaders of Hamas have plenty of fuel and power; they have stolen it from the UNRWA enclaves. That fuel should instead be used for humanitarian purposes in hospitals.

The IDF has been rated by British servicemen as the most ethical military in the world. It is full of conscripts who are themselves regular citizens and quite rightly at pains to minimise any further suffering to civilians. Any breaches of international code by them, and indeed by settlers—as the most reverend Primate the Archbishop of Canterbury has just said—deserve punishment and will receive it. However, we have to stand up, take the difficult decision and say, “We will back Israel to take these actions that it believes are necessary, as we believe this is the only route to peace”.

We know and mourn that there will be innocent tragedies—innocent fatalities. There always are in war. It is the price that Hamas has forced us to pay, but we still pray:

“May He who makes peace in His high places, may He make peace for us, for all Israel and all mankind. Amen”.

--- Later in debate ---

[Lord Singh of Wimbledon (CB)]

My Lords, Sikh teachings remind us that conflict arises when we fail to recognise that we are all members of the same one human family, with equal rights and dignity. That sentiment is echoed in the UN Declaration of Human Rights, which states that ignoring human rights can lead to suffering and lasting hatred.

In the 1930s and 1940s, Jews were vilified, not only in Germany but in much of Europe. The word “Jew” was used as a term of abuse. At school, I was frequently called a Jew by those who wished to hurt me. Then we saw film footage of atrocities in Belsen and other extermination camps. I have visited Auschwitz and seen evidence of the unbelievable cruelty shown to those considered lesser beings. Jews suffered horrendously in the Holocaust and from the cruel anti-Semitism of Europe. Some moved to Palestine to build a homeland where they could live free from persecution.

Despite clear promises made to the indigenous Palestinians that their rights would be safeguarded, many were forcibly moved from land that they had inhabited for centuries. Their anger and bitterness have been made worse by subsequent events and broken promises, such as that of the UN for a separate Palestinian state. The world has also turned a blind eye to illegal Jewish settlements in the West Bank. According to a report by Amnesty International, Palestinians in Israel live in apartheid conditions, with discrimination in education, land ownership, housing and employment. Gaza has suffered an Israeli blockade of food and supplies for the last 16 years.

However, the deplorable and callous treatment of Palestinians cannot justify the barbaric attack by Hamas on the State of Israel and the taking of hostages. But the West’s unquestioning support for Israel and indifference to the suffering of Palestinians has fuelled anger and resentment, making any genuine peace settlement far harder.

In its recent report, Amnesty International reminds us that the Israeli blockading of food, fuel, electricity and water to Gaza, and the indiscriminate bombing of civilians, schools and hospitals, are crimes against humanity. It also refers to what it considers compelling evidence of Israel’s use of white phosphorus, which can burn to the bone. Why the silence of the UK Government and the western media? If this banned substance had been used by Russians in Ukraine, there would have been banner news headlines about a chilling disregard for human life. Now we have President Biden saying that the indiscriminate onslaught on Gaza should continue until all hostages have been released. Their lives are important, but so are the lives of 2 million inhabitants of Gaza. To rephrase an appropriate line from Shakespeare, “If a Palestinian is cut, does he not bleed?”

Israel’s response is not proportionate. It is the cruel, inhumane, collective punishment of some 2 million already deprived and starving people—a collective punishment not seen since the Second World War. The West needs to change 20th-century mindsets of friend, foe and strategic advantage to meet the new challenges of the 21st century. We have a responsibility to nudge both Israelis and Palestinians to look to common interests and a respect for human rights for both Jews and Palestinians.

[Lord Leigh of Hurley (Con)]

Before my friend the noble Lord sits down, is he aware that the Israel Defense Forces categorically and specifically denied using white phosphorus, and would he care to withdraw that suggestion?

[Lord Singh of Wimbledon (CB)]

They have, as one would expect, but is there any evidence? Is Amnesty International deliberately telling untruths?