Starmer to convene urgent Cabinet meeting on Gaza to set out pathway to peace

Sir Keir Starmer will convene an urgent Cabinet meeting on Tuesday as he seeks to set out a pathway to peace in Gaza.

The Prime Minister will call senior ministers in during the summer recess for the meeting on Gaza on Tuesday afternoon, the PA news agency understands.

Sir Keir shared plans he is working on with France and Germany to “bring about a lasting peace” with US President Donald Trump when they met in Scotland, Downing Street said.

And he plans to share details with Arab states and other key allies in the coming days.

Sir Keir is facing mounting calls to recognise Palestinian statehood immediately.

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Focus

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “This week, the Prime Minister is focused on a pathway to peace to ensure immediate relief for those on the ground, and a sustainable route to a two-state solution.

“We are clear that the recognition of the Palestinian state is a matter of when, not if, but it must be one of the steps on the path to a two-state solution as part of a wider plan that delivers lasting security for both Palestinians and Israelis.”

Speaking on Tuesday morning, Technology Secretary Peter Kyle said he would not “pre-empt” the meeting, but added it was “right” to “assess what Britain can do” to ease the situation in Gaza.

He also said the Palestinian people should be “rewarded for what they’ve been through” and given the tools “to move them towards the kind of peace, stability and dignity that every citizen in every country is owed”.

Amid international alarm over starvation in Gaza, Israel announced at the weekend that it would suspend fighting in three areas for 10 hours a day and open secure routes for aid delivery.

The UK confirmed it was taking part in airdrops of aid into the territory.

Aid agencies have welcomed the new measures but said they were not enough to counter the rising hunger in the Palestinian territory.

Sir Keir said that the British public is “revolted” at the scenes of desperation in Gaza as he appeared alongside Mr Trump at his Turnberry golf course on Monday.

“It’s a humanitarian crisis, it’s an absolute catastrophe.

“Nobody wants to see that. I think people in Britain are revolted at seeing what they’re seeing on their screens, so we’ve got to get to that ceasefire.”

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Statehood

The US president hinted at sticking points in US-led negotiations over a peace deal, saying Palestinian militant group Hamas had become “very difficult to deal with” in recent weeks.

He suggested this was because they only held a small remaining number of Israeli hostages.

Sir Keir has likened the plan he is working on with France and Germany to the coalition of the willing, the international effort to support Ukraine towards a lasting peace.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said the plan would build “on the collaboration to date that paves the way to a long-term solution on security in the region”.

Sir Keir is meanwhile facing calls from a growing number of MPs to recognise a Palestinian state immediately.

More than 250 cross-party MPs have now signed a letter calling for ministers to take the step, up from 221 on Friday.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds on Monday dismissed the idea that there is a split at the top of Government over when to recognise a Palestinian state, saying “we all want it to happen”.

Health Secretary Wes Streeting is among those to have signalled a desire for hastened action, calling for recognition “while there’s still a state of Palestine left to recognise”, while Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood said the Government wants to recognise a Palestinian state “in contribution to a peace process”.