The UN has long been calling for a ceasefire in Gaza. However, the bottleneck this entire time is not Israel but Hamas and its refusal to release the Israeli hostages. Hamas has no regard for human life and is willing to sacrifice its own people for its cause. Despite this, the UN continues to wrongly blame and pressure Israel instead of doing the right thing of blaming Hamas.
At CUFI UK, we are increasingly concerned with the UK government’s foreign policy regarding Israel and how it acts at the UN. Sadly, we feel the UK is failing God’s people.
Late last month, the UK government voted in favour of a UNSC resolution which took out a hostage release as a prerequisite for a ceasefire and pressured Israel to accept a ceasefire without conditions. This is extremely troubling for the hostage families.
Emily Damari is the last British hostage being held in Gaza. The UK government has pledged to do everything in its power to secure her release but failed Emily when voting on this resolution.
Mandy Damari (pictured above with Keir Starmer), Emily’s mother, spoke to LBC and explained that the incident “nearly broke my heart.” Mandy added that it “could have signed a death warrant” for Emily and the other hostages.
This is not hyperbolic. It was revealed by Israeli officials earlier this year that negotiations between Israel and Hamas broke down when Hamas promised to release dead hostages, and were trying to convince Israel to accept more dead hostages than alive hostages. The most horrific thing about this is that Hamas did not need to release dead bodies. They had living hostages available to trade. However, they decided that if they could convince Israel to accept dead bodies, then they would kill some of the alive hostages and add their bodies to the hostage exchange.
Just think that over for a moment. Hamas had live women it could have exchanged, but it tried to convince Israel they were dead, just so they could kill them.
Hamas wants nothing less than the destruction of Israel and the Jewish people. They are driven by demonic forces and we know that the Bible says of Satan and his minions, they are here to rob, steal, kill, and destroy.
Going back to the misguided UN Security Council resolution, it was supported by all UNSC members except for the US, which fortunately vetoed it. We are grateful that the US thwarted the passing of this bill, but it is still very troubling that the UK is supporting such unwise resolutions.
According to the UK mission to the UN, the UK supported the resolution because it, “called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza; an immediate release of all hostages; a huge scale-up in aid access; and the protection of civilians.”
Now, you may be thinking that the resolution calls for the hostages to be released so it is good. This is the argument the UK made. In fact, everything in this statement sounds good, even moral, but it’s not the whole picture. The first two points, in particular, weaken Israel’s hand and strengthen Hamas’s. They undermine the chance of getting the remaining hostages out alive.
Calling for an ‘immediate release of all hostages’ is something the UK and other nations have been calling on for the past 13 months. Hamas has had the opportunity to release all hostages at any time and without any conditions. They haven’t done so because they are using these innocent victims as bargaining chips. They have no reason to give back the hostages. So, the international community needs to put pressure on them.
Hamas does want a ceasefire though. And the only thing stopping a ceasefire from Israel’s point of view is the release of the hostages. If Israel is forced into a ceasefire and none of the hostages are released, that is a victory for Hamas. Israel would never agree to it.
The other parts of the UK’s statement also do not reflect the reality on the ground. Aid is available in Gaza and Israel has delivered 99% of what has been sent to it, holding back just 1% due to security concerns. The real problem for food shortages in Gaza is that UNRWA and other aid distributors are not delivering the food to the Palestinians. Food is piling up on the Gazan side of the border. It has gone through Israel’s security checks and been sent into the Strip, but it is sitting there doing nothing. Israel is upholding its end of the bargain, but once again, it is being blamed for the failings of others.
Likewise, the protection of civilians is also already happening from one side. Israel is doing all it can to protect lives and is doing more to help feed the civilians of Gaza than Hamas has ever done before. Meanwhile, Hamas is doing everything it can to cause death, destruction, and misery. Just this week, Hamas terrorists were filmed shooting civilians in the legs because they were accused of stealing food. There is a reason Hamas leaders are billionaires, because Hamas has always stolen the resources of the Palestinian people for their own means. Their stealing of food today is no different and much of UNRWA’s problems distributing aid is because of Hamas terrorists hijacking lorries.
Hamas is the problem in all of this. Hamas started this war; massacring, raping, and kidnapping innocent men, women, and children in Israel. Hamas are the ones who refuse to release the hostages and enter into a ceasefire agreement. Hamas are the ones who are stealing food supplies from the people of Gaza and stopping the distribution of aid. Hamas are the ones who are putting Palestinian civilians at risk by embedding themselves so deeply within the civilian population.
Every action Hamas has done is a war crime and is illegal under international law. Yet, the world fails to hold these terrorists to account. Instead, the world blames Israel and attacks the Jewish state. The UK and other nations then have the audacity to try and pressure Israel into an agreement that favours Hamas.
It is shameful and wrong but it is not surprising. Sadly, the nations are turning against Israel and the UK is in the grips of this deception.
As Christians, we must keep interceding in prayer. We want to see all the Israeli hostages released, and we have a keen interest in Emily’s release in particular as she is the last British hostage. We are praying that Hamas will put down their weapons and release all the hostages so that there can be peace once again.
