Israel has detained and deported two British MPs, Yuan Yang and Abtisam Mohamed, who attempted to enter the country as part of a parliamentarian delegation. The UK Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, has confirmed that the MPs were refused entry on allegations that they intended to “document the activities of security forces and spread anti-Israel hatred,” the Israeli immigration ministry reported.
Lammy expressed concern over Israel’s actions, calling them “counterproductive” and “deeply concerning.” He emphasized that this treatment of British parliamentarians is unacceptable and that the UK government remains focused on achieving a ceasefire and resuming negotiations to end hostilities in Gaza.
Yang and Mohamed, together, responded in shock at the move, describing it as an unprecedented step by Israeli authorities. They called for members of parliament to be allowed to witness for themselves the conditions in the occupied Palestinian territories.
The MPs reiterated that they will speak out and condemn the Israel-Palestine conflict and how there is a need to respect international humanitarian law. “Parliamentarians should be free to speak honestly in the House of Commons, without fear of being attacked,” they added.
This is not the first time by Israel, where it has also attacked international bodies in the past, including declaring UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “undesirable” and barring two members of the European Parliament from entry earlier this year.
The detention of the British MPs coincides as mounting criticism of Israeli military action is building, particularly following a video that contradicts Israeli explanations for how 15 Palestinian medics were killed last month. The video shows ambulances racing to the scene of an earlier attack and then being shot at themselves.
British human rights attorney Geoffrey Nice has urged the international community to put pressure on Israel to explain itself over the killing of the medical team. According to him, it is impossible to imagine that the attack would have been an act of rogue units within the Israeli army and highlighted the gravity of potential war crimes.
Since the resumption of military activities on March 18, Israel intensified operations in Gaza, with significant casualties, and reports indicating 1,309 fatalities according to the enclave’s Ministry of Health.
