British MPs urge Starmer not to meet "Herzog" due to the genocide in Gaza.

The British newspaper "The Guardian" revealed that a number of Labour Party MPs urged Prime Minister Keir Starmer to refrain from meeting Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who is scheduled to visit Britain next week, amid the ongoing Israeli aggression on Gaza and the widespread anger it has caused within the party and British public opinion.

The newspaper stated that Herzog's anticipated visit on Wednesday and Thursday is the first by a senior Israeli official since Foreign Secretary David Lammy met his counterpart Gideon Sa'ar in an unannounced visit last spring.

It clarified that such visits usually involve meetings with senior ministers and the Prime Minister, but any meeting between Starmer and Herzog would be controversial within the Labour Party, especially with the escalation of the Israeli military campaign against Gaza.

According to "The Guardian," Downing Street has not yet confirmed whether Starmer will meet Herzog, while prominent MPs have called for avoiding any meeting that could be interpreted as support for "Israel" in its war.

Labour MP Sarah Champion stated that allowing Herzog to visit Britain is a "shocking decision," adding: "He is a representative of a government that kills Palestinian children daily, and this disregard for the plight of the Palestinian people contradicts the feelings of anger and disgust among the British."

Former Shadow Chancellor John McDonnell went further, saying that "Herzog should not be allowed to enter the country."

Labour MP Clive Lewis also urged the Prime Minister to exercise extreme caution, considering that "dialogue may be necessary, but merely meeting at this time sends a political message in itself."

Lewis pointed out that Herzog's previous statements about "the responsibility of all residents of Gaza for the October 7 attacks" legitimized the collective punishment practiced by the Israeli occupation, warning that such language could conflict with the Genocide Convention, according to international legal experts.

In contrast, Labour MP Emily Thornberry, chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, believed that the opportunity should be seized to communicate with Herzog, who is known for his distinct positions from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on some domestic issues.

She said: "We should ask the Israeli president: How do you see the future of Palestinians in Jerusalem, the West Bank, and Gaza? If there is no realistic alternative plan, we must recognize a Palestinian state."

Thornberry emphasized that dialogue with Herzog may be easier than dealing with ministers from Netanyahu's far-right government, but she stressed the need for this to be accompanied by a firm British stance.

For his part, the Liberal Democrats' foreign affairs spokesperson, Callum Miller, called on Starmer to use the meeting – if it occurs – to send a clear message about the need for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

These developments come as the British government, along with France, prepares to recognize the Palestinian state during this month's UN General Assembly meeting, while London has imposed sanctions on two hardline Israeli ministers.

"The Guardian" noted that Herzog, despite his symbolic position, sparked widespread controversy with his statements following the October 7, 2023 attacks, when he said that "all residents of Gaza are involved" in them, which the International Court of Justice later considered part of a discourse that could fall under the context of "genocide," as it called on the Israeli occupation in January 2024 to take immediate measures to protect Palestinians.

Herzog's visit comes at a sensitive time; the newspaper points out that Starmer praised last year the "historic friendship between Britain and Israel," but later adopted more critical positions regarding the war that has left over 65,000 dead in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health.