Israel’s leader has accused Sir Keir Starmer and other world leaders of “being on the wrong side” of justice, humanity and history after two Israeli embassy staff were shot dead in Washington DC.
The UK prime minister, French president Emmanuel Macron and Canadian PM Mark Carney were “emboldening Hamas to continue fighting forever”, Benjamin Netanyahu claimed, by giving them “hope to establish a second Palestinian state from which Hamas will again seek to destroy the Jewish state”.
A gunman shot young diplomat couple Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim from close range after they left an event at the Capital Jewish Museum. The suspect then walked into the building chanting “Free Palestine” before he was stopped by security staff and arrested.
On Monday, the UK, French and Canadian governments said in a joint statement they were committed to recognising a Palestinian state “as a contribution to achieving a two-state solution” to the war.
Mr Netanyahu said Hamas had thanked Sir Keir, Mr Macron and Mr Carney for demanding that Israel end its war in Gaza immediately, claiming the three had shown they effectively wanted Hamas to remain in power.
He said in a video on social media: “I say to President Macron, Prime Minister Carney and Prime Minister Starmer: When mass murderers, rapists, baby killers and kidnappers thank you, you’re on the wrong side of justice. You’re on the wrong side of humanity and you’re on the wrong side of history.”
The three leaders, he claimed, wanted Israel to stand down and accept that Hamas’s mass murderers would repeat the 7 October 2023 massacre.
Hamas wanted to annihilate Jews, he said, adding: “I could never understand how this simple truth evades the leaders of France, Britain, Canada and others.”
Sir Keir condemned the shootings, saying antisemitism was “an evil we must stamp out wherever it appears”. He said: “My thoughts are with their colleagues, family and loved ones, and as always, I stand in solidarity with the Jewish community.”
Mr Netanyahu also dismissed as a lie claims that Israel was starving Palestinian children.
Other Israeli ministers have also suggested that the condemnation by Western leaders of Israel’s aid blockade and resumed offensive in Gaza was partly to blame.
“We must also hold to account the irresponsible leaders in the West who give backing to this hatred – whether through appeasement, double standards, or silence,” said Amichai Chikli, Israel’s minister for the diaspora and combatting antisemitism.
“French president Emmanuel Macron, British prime minister Keir Starmer, and Canadian prime minister Mark Carney have all, in different ways, emboldened the forces of terror through their failure to draw moral red lines. This cowardice has a price – and that price is paid in Jewish blood,” he added in a post on X.
In a press briefing later on Thursday morning, Israeli foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar expressed similar views.
