News- Middle East: Leaders of political parties in Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales have urged UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer to impose “immediate” sanctions on Israel and halt all arms sales to the regime over its genocidal war against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

In a joint letter, the politicians pressed Starmer to “act now” to end Britain’s complicity in the Gaza war, demanding an immediate suspension of arms exports to Israel.

They further called on the prime minister to recall Parliament, enforce sanctions on Israel and “support a ceasefire and meaningful diplomatic intervention to protect civilians and secure a just, lasting peace.”

The letter was signed by Northern Ireland’s first minister Michelle O’Neill, Alliance party leader Naomi Long, Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) leader Claire Hanna, the Scottish National Party's (SNP) Westminster leader Stephen Flynn and the convener of the party’s Holyrood group Stuart McMillan.

Among the co-signatories were co-leader Lorna Slater of Scottish Greens, Alistair Carmichael from the Scottish Liberal Democrats, Plaid Cymru-the Party of Wales leader Rhun ap Iorwerth and the party's Westminster group leader Liz Saville Roberts.

“The humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in Gaza is both man-made and avoidable,” the letter said, adding “It is characterized not only by relentless bombardment and destruction, but by the deliberate creation of conditions that are starving a civilian population.”

The politicians noted that Israel’s blocking of aid delivery into Gaza has “precipitated” the man-made famine, claiming more lives and inflicting irreparable harm on an already traumatized population.

The letter said the UK should use its “diplomatic influence to press for the unimpeded delivery of food, water, medicine, and humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza.”

“We urge you to act decisively by standing against the man-made famine, the mass killing of children, and the broader assault on civilian life. History will remember whether we chose to remain silent or to stand on the side of humanity,” the letter stated.

Israel has launched a genocidal war on Gaza since October 7, 2023, after Palestinian resistance fighters carried out the surprise Operation Al-Aqsa Storm against the Zionist entity in response to the regime's decades-long campaign of death and destruction against Palestinians.

The regime’s bloody onslaught on Gaza has killed more than 62,000 Palestinians and injured 156,230 others, according to Gaza's Health Ministry.

Since March 2, when it violated its ceasefire agreement with Hamas, the Israeli regime has sealed all border crossings, blocking the entry of humanitarian aid and further deepening Gaza’s already dire humanitarian crisis.

Source: Press TV