A newly elected UK Labour government will immediately recognize the Palestinian state, party leader Jeremy Corbyn promised on Wednesday.
Choosing his keynote speech at the party’s conference in Liverpool to make the declaration, Mr. Corbyn claimed the act would address alleged “the ongoing denial of justice and rights to the Palestinian people.”
He also claimed his hard left party “united in condemning the shooting of hundreds of unarmed demonstrators in Gaza by Israeli forces and the passing of Israel’s discriminatory nation-state law.”
The latter was a reference to the Knesset legislation defining Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish people that was passed earlier this year.
“The continuing occupation, the expansion of illegal settlements and the imprisonment of Palestinian children are an outrage,” he said.
A two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian is just the start for a new Labour government.
Unite the Union leader Len McCluskey joins other delegates as they wave Palestinian flags during a speech about the situation in Palestine on day three of the Labour Party Conference on September 25, 2018 in Liverpool, England. (Ian Forsyth/Getty Images)
“A quarter of a century on from the Oslo Accords, we are no closer to justice or peace and the Palestinian tragedy continues, while the outside world stands by,” Mr. Corbyn said.
“And in order to help make that two-state settlement a reality we will recognize a Palestinian state as soon as we take office,” he further declared to a cheering hall of supporters.
Mr. Corbyn also used his address to confront the summer of discontent which engulfed the party in allegations of anti-Semitism.
“I say this to all in the Jewish community: This party, this movement, will always be implacable campaigners against anti-Semitism and racism in all its forms. We are your ally.”
Delegates wave Palestinian flags in the main hall during a debate on Palestine in the Exhibition Centre Liverpool, during day three of the annual Labour Party conference in Liverpool, England. ( Leon Neal/Getty Images)
He vowed the next Labour government will guarantee to protect Jewish community centers and places of worship, along with “other community experiencing hateful behavior and physical attacks. We will work with Jewish communities to eradicate anti-Semitism, both from our party and wider society. And with your help I will fight for that with every breath I possess.”
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