On Wednesday of this week, I returned from a three-day visit to Israel. This was my second visit to the country, and was alongside Parliamentarians from across Europe, and from across the political divide.
The purpose was clear – to show solidarity with Israel after the horrific terrorist attacks of 7th October last year, and to discuss the ongoing war against Hamas with Israeli politicians.
As some will remember, I had watched the near hour-long footage of 7th October before, which has been shown to a select few. That documents, in graphic detail, the scale of Hamas’ atrocities that day. But seeing the aftermath yourself is something else. Even writing this I feel the emotion I had as I stepped across the threshold of homes in one of the Kibbutz that came under attack, or as I sat and listened to a survivor of the Nova Music Festival. They are stories and sights that will stay with me.
In Sderot, a small city just a few miles from the border of Gaza, we saw CCTV footage from the morning of the attack. Residents there have just 15 seconds from when sirens sound, warning of incoming rocket attack, to get to a shelter. Even before 7th October this was a constant in life there, but on 7th October that was matched with terrorists marauding the streets as people came out of the shelters to flee. Today, the city is a shadow of its former self, with tens of thousands of those who live there displaced across Israel.
The same is true too of Kibbutz (communities) across Southern Israel. On 7th October Hamas stormed multiple of these. The terror they inflicted, through murder, kidnap, burning and looting, was still evident. The sea of bullet holes in bedrooms, the charred walls of burnt-out homes, and property strewn across the ground as belongings had been ransacked. The sights will stay with me forever.
We also spoke to families of those still being held hostage inside Gaza – which still stands at 136 people despite being more than 130 days on.
No one we spoke to wanted to be at war. The scenes in Gaza are heart-breaking, in no small part because the suffering there is happening because of Hamas too. By embedding themselves in civilian areas, under hospitals and schools, they use normal people as human shields.
Much of our discussion with politicians focused on how this ends – something we all want to see. That must include a release of all remaining hostages, and the removal of Hamas as a force able to inflict terror both inside and outside Gaza. Because Israelis and Palestinians alike deserve a brighter future filled with peace, security, and prosperity.
Finally, I have to comment on the turmoil that has struck the Labour Party in our area over the last few days. I find it sickening that as I was meeting with survivors and hostage families, and seeing the aftermath of 7th October, local Labour Party parliamentary candidates were engaged in antisemitic tropes, and conspiracy theories suggesting Israel coordinated the massacre that took place. It’s clear that the days of Jeremy Corbyn are not behind the party as they like to suggest, and there remains serious questions that need answering about who else was there and why they didn’t speak out.
