A British government minister’s recent remarks telling Israel to “get its house in order” are not only ill-judged, they are hypocritical and reveal a deeper problem within the Labour Party’s worldview.
There has been much said about Bob Vylan and their Glastonbury performance which was broadcast on the BBC for the nation to see. In it, Bob Vylan chanted “Death, death to the IDF” and called for Israel to be wiped out, saying, “Hell yeah, from the river to the sea, Palestine must be, will be, inshallah it will be free.”
The media has generally focused on the “death to the IDF” chants. Whilst calling for the death of Israelis is inflammatory and dangerous language, he also called to wipe out Israel all together. And it appears from the use of “inshallah” that Bob Vylan’s views on this conflict are religiously motivated and could therefore align with radical Islamist ideology.
Prime Minister Starmer has spoken to the BBC and asked why this was allowed to be broadcast. There are also other investigations into Bob Vylan and we hope justice will be served. However, comments by government officials, particularly from the Health Secretary, Wes Streeting, are deeply problematic.
Streeting said the performance at Glastonbury was “appalling” but criticised the Israeli governments harsh response to it, saying: “I’d also say to the Israeli embassy, get your own house in order, in terms of the conduct of your own citizens and the settlers in the West Bank.”
He added: “I think there’s a serious point there by the Israeli embassy I take seriously. I wish they’d take the violence of their own citizens towards Palestinians more seriously.”
Streeting kept speaking out of both sides of his mouth, saying, “We all condemned and continue to condemn what happened on October the 7th. We all want to see the return of the hostages. And there’s no justification for inciting violence against Israelis.
“But you know, the way in which Israel’s conducting this war has made it extremely difficult for Israel’s allies around the world to stand by and justify. In fact, we’ve got to do the opposite as an international community, which is to challenge and urge a change, of course”, he added.
Streeting’s response is shameful.
Israel is fighting for its very survival against the genocidal terror of Hamas and the Iranian-backed “Axis of Terror”. Israel has conducted itself extremely well, fighting in one of the most densely populated war zones on earth, whilst achieving one of the lowest civilian death rates in modern warfare, far better than NATO countries achieved in other Middle East conflicts.
Furthermore, Israel is routinely arresting Israeli “settlers” who cause trouble in Judea and Samaria. Any violence carried out is done independently and not in Israel’s name. The “Settlers” are in the spotlight far more than Palestinian terrorism, despite Palestinian terror causing many more deaths to Israelis than “Settler violence” has ever caused to Palestinians. And there is a clear difference between the two: The Palestinian Authority pays Palestinians to murder Jews. Israel, on the other hand, arrests and prosecutes Israelis who attack Palestinians.
The UK government condemns Israel for the actions of a minority of Israeli citizens, but the UK government does not condemn the PA for its ‘pay for slay’ policy which is not just a niche thing, it has widespread Palestinian backing. Worse still, the UK continues to increase funding the PA meaning that UK taxpayer money is inadvertently funding this antisemitic terror.
Furthermore, whilst the UK is lecturing Israel, Britain can’t even enforce its own anti-terror laws. Hamas and Hezbollah are proscribed terror organisations in the UK, yet there are constant hate marches on Britain’s streets where thousands of people have shown support for these terror groups and called for the destruction of Israel. Additionally, the government allowed the band Kneecap, which openly displayed support for Hezbollah at a London event, to re-enter the country and perform at Glastonbury. They are currently being investigated for terror offenses and should have been barred from the country, not given a headline act at Glastonbury.
Streeting is also not the only one to say the line about Israel’s actions making it hard for its “friends” to support her. This line has gained popularity on the Left of politics, particularly governments that are trying to appear as allies of Israel whilst acting otherwise. Israel doesn’t need fair weather friends who scold her from a distance while ignoring the fact that she’s fighting an enemy that slaughters civilians and uses its own people as shields. If anything, Israel’s standing in the region has grown since October 7th, not weakened. Arab states like Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and even North African countries are growing closer to Israel. Why? Because Israel is confronting Iran, the common enemy of the entire region, and is dealing with Hamas in a way which military experts thought impossible. Israel’s actions are not making it harder, they’re making it easier. It’s the lies and distortions of those who hate Israel that are muddying the waters and turning people’s attitudes against Israel.
Israel’s war against Hamas is not only justified, it’s essential. Hamas must be defeated and the hostages must be freed. It is not merely a battle over land. It’s a battle between civilisation and barbarism, between a democratic state and an Islamist death cult. It’s a war of good vs evil, of God against Satan. And we stand on the side of Israel and the God of Israel.
Yet, while Israel is facing its enemies head-on, the UK struggles to maintain control over its border and confront terror threats on its own shores. Iranian terror plots are being foiled on British soil. We have active IRGC operatives and affiliates posing real threats, and still the UK has not outlawed the IRGC, despite repeated warnings and calls from security experts.
The UK has applied certain arms embargoes on Israel all while continuing to fund UNRWA, an agency repeatedly caught enabling Hamas propaganda and employing terrorists, and as mentioned before, Labour has increased aid to the Palestinian Authority, which pays stipends to terrorists who murder Jews. The UK condemns Israel for feeding Palestinians in Gaza, despite Israel doing more to feed an enemy’s civilian population than any other country in war.
Labour and Streeting are completely wrong in their criticisms of Israel. They think they are standing on moral high ground, when in reality they are in the quagmire of anti-Israel rhetoric: Demonising Israel while turning a blind eye to our increasing terror threats in the UK, hypocritical in its foreign policy, and showing cowardice in confronting radical Islamists at home and abroad.
Israel doesn’t need lectures. She needs allies. Real ones. As Brits, we need our government to get its house in order to protect us all from the dangers of radical Islam and rising antisemitism. And of course, we need our government to stop cursing Israel, because it will not end well for Britain.
