Gaza: We must not pay for innocent lives with innocent lives, says North Devon MP

It was with horror that I, like many across the world, watched Hamas’ terror attacks on Israel on October 7 and with growing concern the escalation of violence across Israel, Gaza and the wider region.
There is no denying that Hamas carried out these atrocious attacks driven by its deep-rooted antisemitism and its belief that all Jews must be eradicated from Israel.
I join the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, in his support for Israel as it seeks to secure the safety of its citizens, and the 203 hostages being held by Hamas.
My thoughts are with the families, in Israel, the UK and across the world, who are hoping to be reunited with their held family members.
I support the Prime Minister in his urging of Israel to protect innocent civilians on both sides of the conflict. Israel has the right to defend its security in light of Hamas’ massacre, but it is vital international law is adhered to.
The Palestinian people living in Gaza also suffer under Hamas’ control of the territory. The Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary, James Cleverly, have visited the region to work with allies and it is with relief that humanitarian aid has now begun to enter Gaza.
We must not pay for innocent lives with innocent lives.
Last week I was in the House of Commons to listen to the cross party support for the Israeli people, and the Prime Minister’s announcement of a further £10million of aid to be sent to Gaza.
The work of the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary in the region has been crucial to the much needed opening of the crossing.
However, aid continuing to flow through the crossing is contingent on Hamas allowing it to reach innocent Palestinian civilians, for the purposes intended.
Unfortunately, as we have seen over the years, Hamas has frequently chosen to prioritise attacking Israel over the lives of Palestinians in Gaza.
As we live more of our lives online our consumption of news and events has changed. With online sources we are quickly informed of developments, however as we saw during the pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, this makes it easy for misinformation to spread quickly.
As the Foreign Secretary said, it is vital we wait for the full facts before coming to any conclusions, especially those that may inflame community tensions here in the UK, as well as across Israel, Gaza and the wider region. It is vital this conflict does not escalate further.
There has also been a surge in faith based attacks across the UK following the attacks on Israel.
The Community Security Trust, which represents British Jews on issues of racism and policing, has reported that anti-semitic attacks in the UK have increased by 581 per cent since Hamas’ attacks on Israel.
Similarly, Islamophobic attacks have tripled. If you need to report a hate crime you can do so by phoning 101 or by visiting https://www.devon-cornwall.police.uk/reporthatecrime.
Whilst our Government works on the international stage to end the violence in Israel and Gaza, we must not bring that violence to the UK. We live in the society that is the envy of many, where we respect others and their beliefs.
It is not right that some communities are currently scared to practice their religion and I hope that we can all come together to support each other through tough times such as these.
Please note: Written on Monday, October 22.