Starmer says focus is on getting aid into Gaza despite Labour split over ceasefire
High-profile MP Jess Phillips was among 10 frontbenchers to quit or be sacked from their role as Keir Starmer faced a mass rebellion over his refusal to back a ceasefire in Gaza.
Yasmin Qureshi, Afzal Khan and Paula Barker resigned on Wednesday evening in order to vote for an SNP amendment to the King’s Speech backing a ceasefire.
MPs voted 293 to 125, majority 168, to reject the SNP’s King’s Speech amendment calling for “all parties to agree to an immediate ceasefire” in Gaza. A total of 56 Labour MPs voted for the amendment.
This comes as Israel says its forces have entered the Al Shifa hospital, Gaza’s largest medical facility, as part of the IDF’s ground offensive against Hamas.
The Israeli military said it had killed several militants at the outset of the raid, and claimed they had been confronted by “explosive devices and terrorist squads”.
Gunfire and explosions were heard inside the hospital complex, which had been surrounded by Israeli forces in recent days but continued to operate with hundreds of patients and medical personnel still inside.
Israel accuses Hamas of using hospitals as cover for its fighters, alleging that Hamas has set up its main command centre in and beneath Al Shifa hospital. Both Hamas and hospital staff deny the Israeli allegations.
