Prime Minister Starmer Doubles Down on Israel Ceasefire Demand after Hostages Killed

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer doubled down on his demand that Israel accept a ceasefire after six hostages held by Islamist Hamas terrorists were found dead in a Gazza tunnel.

In a statement released on Sunday, Starmer said that he was “completely shocked at the horrific and senseless killing” after the discovery of the bodies of hostages Carmel Gat, Eden Yerushalmi, American-Israeli Hersh Goldberg-Polin, Alexander Lobanov, Almog Sarusi, and Master Sergeant Ori Danino.

According to the Israeli Defence Forces, the six hostages were shot and killed by Hamas terrorists over the past two days under the assumption that Israeli soldiers were closing in on their position.

Despite acknowledging the “senseless killing” committed by Hamas, the new left-wing British leader took the opportunity of the hostages’ deaths to redouble his call for Israel to accept a ceasefire.

“Hamas must release all the hostages now, and a ceasefire deal must be agreed by all sides immediately to end the suffering,” Sir Keir said.

Before coming into power, Starmer initially backed Israel’s tough response to the Hamas terror attacks on October 7th, which left around 1,200 people dead in Israel and hundreds more taken as hostages, many of who remain in captivity to this day.

Then opposition leader Starmer even supported Jerusalem cutting off water and electricity into Gaza, sparking outrage among Muslims in Britain, who represent one of his left-wing Labour Party’s most loyal bases of support.

Dozens of Muslim politicians resigned from the party over Starmer’s stance. The Labour leader also saw several resignations from his then-shadow cabinet after he demanded that they not vote for a ceasefire resolution in November of last year.

The pre-election stance towards Israel for Starmer came amid his attempts to rebrand Labour as a moderate party worthy of governing. Under his predecessor, socialist Jeremy Corbyn, the party had been plagued by accusations of rampant antisemitism, and Corbyn had openly cozied up with radical Islamists, including by calling Hamas his “brothers” on Iranian state television.

However, since coming into power, Starmer has largely fallen in line with his leftist base on the issue, saying after the July 4th election that there was an “urgent” need for a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas.

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