Israel/Gaza

Lord Austin of Dudley Excerpts

Tuesday 24th October 2023 Lords Chamber

[Lord Austin of Dudley (Non-Afl)]

My Lords, it is always worth listening to the noble Lord, Lord Pannick. It is a privilege to follow that brilliant speech. I start by expressing my condolences to the noble Baroness, Lady Deech, and her family on the death of their relative. I draw attention to my registered interests. I am the Prime Minister’s voluntary trade envoy to Israel.

In 2017, I visited Nir Oz, one of the small kibbutzim on the Gaza border attacked by Hamas. Survivors say that between one-quarter and one-third of its 350 residents were killed or kidnapped. What happened is worth repeating: babies beheaded, women raped, and families tied together and burned. It seems to me that, when Israeli officials use the word “animals”, they are not talking about Palestinians in general; they are talking about Hamas. It seems to be a perfectly accurate description. For people in this House to suggest that that word is being used about Palestinians in general is irresponsible and dangerous. This is brutal terrorism, just like ISIS.

I could never understand Holocaust denial, but social media for the past fortnight has been flooded with people claiming that babies had not been killed, or not in the reported numbers, and questioning the accounts of the survivors and Israeli officials bringing it to our attention. The attack on young people at the music festival would be the equivalent of 2,000 young British people being killed at Glastonbury. Over 7,000 missiles have been aimed indiscriminately at residential areas in Israel—not at military targets, which is what the IDF try to do. That is the same number of rockets fired by the Germans on the UK throughout the whole of the blitz. More Jewish people were killed on a single day than on any day since the Holocaust. In the face of that, Israel does not just have the legal right but a clear duty to defend its citizens, rescue the hostages and deal with Hamas.

The background to this is that Israel recently signed the Abraham accords to normalise relations with three Arab states and was in negotiations with Saudi Arabia. Iran, a state sponsor of terror, as we have heard, is desperate to prevent that, which is why Hamas launched this attack. It knew what Israel would have to do in response and does not care that ordinary people in Gaza are being put in harm’s way.

I have campaigned for a Palestinian state since I was a teenager, but the failure to establish one cannot be laid at Israel’s door. When the United Nations decided that there would be two states in land administered by the British in Palestine—two states, side by side, as we heard from the noble Baroness, Lady Ramsay—the Jewish leadership agreed, and Israel was established. Instead of agreeing to a Palestinian state for the Arab population, five Arab countries invaded on day one and the Palestinians, tragically, are still without a state.

Since then, the Palestinians have been offered a state on three or four occasions. Tragically, again, the Palestinian leadership rejected them all, and groups like Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad continued with terrorism. The terrible position of the people in Gaza cannot be blamed on Israel either. The responsibility for this is clearly the leadership of Hamas, who have amassed billions and live in air-conditioned luxury in the Four Seasons Hotel in Doha.

Gaza has not been occupied. We heard earlier that Gaza is under occupation, but Gaza has not been occupied for 18 years. When Israel unilaterally pulled out of Gaza in 2005, it had a functioning economy, control of its imports and exports, open borders, plans to build a seaport and discussions on an airport. Then Hamas, committed to Israel’s destruction, staged a bloody coup, executed its rivals and banned elections. Its founding charter calls for Jews to be killed. People need to understand that it is opposed to the very idea of a peace process, which, it says, would involve the surrender of Islamic land. It is completely naive for people in this House to argue for a peace process with Hamas.

Hamas launched a vicious terrorist campaign, killing Israeli civilians. Instead of building hospitals and schools or a successful economy, it spends funds on rockets and tunnels to attack Israel. When people say that fuel has to be provided for the people of Gaza, of course it does, but the fuel is stolen by Hamas to fire its rockets. That is why Israel had to build border controls and security fences. Last week’s attacks show just how necessary they were. It is not, as we heard today, a blockade; it is a defence.

According to the UN, Hamas stores its rockets in schools used to house displaced people. While Israel uses its weapons to protect its people, Hamas uses the people to protect the weapons. We know the next few weeks will be awful; war always is. But British Army officers tell me that no army in the world takes as much care as Israel’s to protect civilians. We have heard calls for a ceasefire this afternoon. Hamas would use a ceasefire just to prepare the next attack.

Tragically, we have seen an increase in anti-Semitic incidents in the UK, as we have heard. Since the attacks, the Community Security Trust has recorded at least 600 anti-Semitic incidents across the country, the highest ever recorded in a 17-day period. We have seen disgraceful support for terrorism at marches. This weekend in London, a rally was organised by the racist extremist group Hizb ut-Tahrir, at which people held a banner with the slogan “Muslim armies, rescue the people of Palestine”. A speaker was filmed asking, “What is the solution to liberate people in the concentration camp called Palestine?”, and in response the crowd chanted “Jihad”. Does anyone think that they were using the word “Jihad” to mean some sort of personal spiritual struggle? In that context, it is obviously a call to wage war on Israel. If that is not incitement, which the police should be dealing with, I do not know what is.

Finally, I will read what IDF general Mickey Edelstein said yesterday.

“They came to kill and burn civilians. Not military personnel. Civilians. … We told civilians to evacuate northern Gaza. Yes … and there are civilian casualties. But we are not looking for kids to kill. We are not looking to kill hostages … We do not find kids and then force them to go and ask their neighbours to come out, and then when they do kill them”.


This is the position Israel is in. Israel’s aim is to minimise civilian casualties. Hamas aims to kill as many civilians as it can.