作者： admin

An independent tribunal co-chaired by former Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn has concluded that Britain served as an active participant in certain Israeli war crimes during the Gaza conflict. The findings, published in a comprehensive report on Monday, emerged from last September’s highly publicized Gaza Tribunal proceedings.

The tribunal was convened following the Labour government’s blockage of Corbyn’s proposed legislation calling for a Chilcot-style public inquiry into UK-Israel military cooperation. The proceedings gathered testimony from a diverse array of sources including eyewitnesses, United Nations rapporteurs, journalists, medical professionals, and academic experts.

The final report presents a damning indictment of British policy, asserting that the nation “failed in its fundamental obligation to prevent genocide, has been complicit in atrocity crimes, and in some instances has even been an active participant in these crimes.” Corbyn characterized the findings as documentation of the government’s “legacy as an active participant in one of the greatest crimes of our time.

Among the specific allegations, the report details that Britain conducted hundreds of surveillance flights over Gaza during the conflict, sharing gathered intelligence with Israeli forces despite government claims that such cooperation was exclusively for “hostage rescue” purposes. The tribunal recommends that the UK immediately provide all collected surveillance footage to both the International Criminal Court (ICC) and International Court of Justice (ICJ).

The document further criticizes the government’s limited arms embargo as insufficient, advocating instead for a comprehensive prohibition on weapons transfers. It references the ICJ’s January 2024 genocide ruling and subsequent advisory opinion declaring Israel’s occupation illegal, arguing these decisions created binding legal obligations for states to prevent genocide and cease trade relations concerning occupied territories.

Notably, the report cites Middle East Eye’s previous reporting that David Cameron, during his tenure as foreign secretary, threatened the ICC’s chief prosecutor with Britain’s withdrawal from the court if it pursued arrest warrants against Israeli officials.

The tribunal’s recommendations include imposing economic sanctions on Israel, terminating all military cooperation, investigating British citizens potentially involved in war crimes, and establishing a full independent public inquiry with powers to question ministers and officials about UK-Israel cooperation since October 2023.

Co-chaired by Dr. Shahd Hammouri, an international law lecturer at the University of Kent, and Professor Neve Gordon, a human rights law expert at Queen Mary University of London, the tribunal featured strong condemnations from both legal scholars. Dr. Hammouri accused top UK officials of “lying, manipulating the law, denying reality, and prosecuting truth-tellers,” while Professor Gordon warned that the government’s complicity “has created a very dangerous precedent.”

In response to the allegations, the Foreign Office noted it has implemented three sets of sanctions addressing settler violence in the West Bank and opposes forced displacement. Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer recently stated there “must be accountability and justice for all crimes committed across Palestinian and Israeli territory.”

Israeli authorities have confirmed the extended closure of Jerusalem’s Al-Aqsa Mosque through the upcoming Eid al-Fitr celebrations and beyond, according to sources familiar with the matter. Middle East Eye has learned that the Islamic Waqf, the Jordanian-appointed body administering the holy site, received official notification of this decision in recent days.

The unprecedented shutdown of one of Islam’s most sacred sites began earlier this month citing security concerns during regional tensions. This marks the first Ramadan since Israel’s 1967 occupation of East Jerusalem that Palestinian worshippers have been completely barred from Friday prayers at the mosque.

The closure has drawn condemnation from eight Muslim-majority nations who declared Israel holds ‘no sovereignty’ over the site and demanded immediate lifting of restrictions. Despite these calls, Israeli forces maintain a heavy presence in the Old City, continuing bans on both Friday and nightly Ramadan prayers while preventing Palestinian access to the compound.

Currently, no more than 25 Waqf staff members are permitted inside the vast complex per shift. Sources reveal Israeli authorities even rejected a request for an additional manuscript department employee, warning that any expansion would trigger permission for Israeli settlers to resume daily incursions.

Waqf officials suspect Israeli forces have installed surveillance cameras inside prayer halls, including within the Dome of the Rock, enabling constant monitoring. The mosque closure coincides with a near-total lockdown of the Old City, where only residents are permitted entry, leaving normally vibrant Palestinian markets deserted.

During Laylat al-Qadr, the holiest night in Islam, hundreds of police blocked access routes, forcing worshippers to pray on streets under threat of violence. Dr. Mustafa Abu Sway of the Islamic Waqf Council noted the stark contrast between the internal lockdown and normal life continuing just meters outside the ancient walls.

International affairs director Aouni Bazbaz expressed concerns that temporary measures could become permanent arrangements, potentially altering decades-long status quo agreements that preserve Al-Aqsa as an exclusively Islamic site under Waqf administration. Palestinians maintain that Israeli occupation has progressively eroded these arrangements while expanding control over the contested territory.