The British Prime Minister met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog yesterday despite urgent legal proceedings to secure his arrest over the Gaza genocide.
A day before Starmer and Herzog’s meeting took place, the Crown Prosecution Service’s counter terrorism division appointed a senior specialist prosecutor to “urgently” review an application for the Israeli president’s arrest.
Pro-Palestine campaign group Friends of Al-Aqsa (FOA) instructed a legal team to apply for the arrest warrant on behalf of Herzog for “charges of aiding, abetting or procuring direct and indiscriminate attacks on civilians and civilian objects.”
FOA requested a decision to be reached by 10am on Wednesday, but the CPS said that this deadline would be “challenging.”
The meeting between British PM Starmer and Israeli President Herzog subsequently took place on Wednesday. Starmer reportedly criticised Israel’s actions over humanitarian aid and the “man-made famine.”
“They must stop the man-made famine from worsening further by letting aid in and halting their offensive operations”, a Downing Street official said following the meeting on Wednesday.
The meeting took place amid street protests that demanded Herzog’s arrest as a war criminal.
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“There is now an oppurtunity to correct the failings and issue an arrest warrant to investigate Herzog’s incitement to attacks on Gaza,” said Ismail Patel from Friends of al-Aqsa.
Thousands took to the streets outside Downing Street for a second consecutive day, as Herzog’s visit drew widespread criticism.
Herzog’s own statements were used in the ICJ in January of 2024 as a “serious risk of genocide” as he said: “The entire [Palestinian] nation out there is responsible. It is not true, this rhetoric about civilians not aware, not involved.”
Starmer criticises Israel’s actions
Starmer criticised Israel’s recent actions, marking his strongest criticisms of Israel yet since taking office in July 2024, despite rallying behind Israel and denying that a genocide is taking place.
A Downing Street spokesperson said that Starmer “implored Israel to change course” in Gaza.
The meeting came a day after Israel launched an air strike on Qatar – a close ally of both the U.K. and United States.
Starmer was seen in the House of Commons on the same day of the meeting, condemning Israel’s recent actions.
“I condemn the strikes that Israel carried out in Doha yesterday. They violate Qatar’s sovereignty. They do nothing to secure the peace.” Starmer said.
“I will also be clear that restrictions on aid must be lifted, the offensive in Gaza must stop, and settlement building in Gaza must stop,” he added.
President Herzog’s response to Starmer’s criticism
Herzog spoke to the Chatham House thinktank immediately after the meeting, countering Starmer’s points, saying that he offered the British government a fact-finding mission to look at the levels of aid entering in Gaza.
He denied that any famine was taking place and blamed the high civilian death toll on the fact that Hamas were supposedly placing missiles in living rooms.
Herzog’s statements denying the suffering and famine come just after various aid groups have warned of the pending humanitarian disaster where hundreds of thousands of Palestinians in Gaza could face catastrophic hunger from the relentless bombardment and blockade.
The Israeli president also expressed no regret nor apology over the attack on Doha on Tuesday.
Instead, he accused Qatar of being allies of Hamas rather than mediators.
U.K. defends the meeting despite criticism
Despite the various protesters and MPs imploring against the meeting, No 10 defended the meeting, saying that it was was necessary in order to try to persuade Herzog that Israel needed to do more to end suffering.
Downing Street also said that Israel needed to do more to evacuate injured children and potential students from Gaza to the UK.
Nevertheless, the meeting was met with heckles from protesters.
“This is not diplomacy!” said one protester.
“You are aiding and abetting a genocide – and this man is not welcome in our country,” another shouted.
Herzog’s trip was billed as a private visit to support the Jewish community in the UK.
On his encounter with Starmer he said: “It was a meeting between allies, but it was a tough meeting.”
Despite the condemnation, the spokesperson for Downing Street added that “the UK and Israel are longstanding allies.”
