Israel detains, deports two British parliamentarians

Two members of the UK parliament, Yuan Yang and Abtisam Mohamed, were denied entry to Israel and deported on Saturday.

Ms Yang, the MP representing Earley and Woodley, and Ms Mohamed, the MP representing Sheffield Central, flew to Israel from Luton Airport on Saturday, alongside two aides.

However, they were denied entry by the Israeli Interior Minister Moshe Arbel after a period of detention and interrogation.

The Israeli immigration ministry, in a statement, said the government found that both MPs intended to spread hateful rhetoric against Israel and its population.

The ministry said they were suspected of plans to “document the activities of security forces and spread anti-Israel hatred.”

Israel also claimed it had not verified the arrival of an official visit. But the UK Foreign Office affirmed that the group was part of a parliamentary delegation.

Reacting to this, UK Foreign Secretary David Lammy criticised Israeli authorities for denying the two Labour MPs entry to the country and detaining them.

The actions of the Israeli government, he said, were unacceptable and highly concerning.

“It is unacceptable, counterproductive, and deeply concerning that two British MPs on a parliamentary delegation to Israel have been detained and refused entry by the Israeli authorities,” Mr Lammy said.

“I have made clear to my counterparts in the Israeli government that this is no way to treat British parliamentarians, and we have been in contact with both MPs tonight to offer our support.

“The UK government’s focus remains on securing a return to the ceasefire and negotiations to stop the bloodshed, free the hostages and end the conflict in Gaza.”

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Israel has been engulfed in a war with Gaza since Hamas militants and those of other Palestinian groups attacked Israel on 7 October 2023, leading to the death of about 1,200 people. A ceasefire deal had halted the fighting but ended on 1 March. Talks had begun to extend the deal when an attack by Israel in late March suspended negotiations.

The health ministry in Gaza, which Hamas governs, reported that 1,249 people have been killed since Israel resumed heavy airstrikes last month.

This brings the total number of Palestinians killed by Israel in Gaza to about 50,609 since the 2023 attack. Majority of the victims are women and children.