New Defence Secretary Wes Streeting has claimed Israel has “fallen short” of British military standards in its conduct of the war against Hamas.
Wes Streeting, who was just two days into his new role when he made the remarks to journalists at the Farnborough Airshow, said he held Israel “to the same standard that we hold ourselves to.”
“That was a standard,” he said, that Israel had “fallen short of”.
His comments stood in contrast to those of former deputy supreme allied commander of Nato, General Sir John McColl, who wrote in The Times in 2024 that Israel’s actions in Gaza were “rigorous compared to the British Army and our western allies”.
Following a visit to Israel and Gaza, McColl wrote that “there is balance missing in the reporting of events in Gaza” and that “Israeli soldiers are fighting in conditions of extraordinary complexity and risk. It’s time for the world to have its eyes opened to that.”
Streeting also said he would not “pretend” he had not previously accused Israel of committing war crimes in a WhatsApp message to Lord Mandelson, then the UK ambassador to the US.
Streeting sent text messages to the disgraced Labour peer which included comments that Israel was "committing war crimes before our eyes" and “talking the language of ethnic cleansing”.
Asked if he stood by these remarks, the new defence secretary said: “My comments are there. They are published. They are on the record. I am not going to pretend I didn’t make those comments.”
He was also asked whether the UK should continue to buy Israeli weapons.
“When it comes to decisions around procurement, trade agreements, diplomatic ties there is a clear framework for making decisions on all of those. Those are not my decisions alone,” he said.
“I have expressed very clearly my concerns about Israel’s actions in Gaza and the West Bank. I believe very strongly in Israel’s right to defend itself to defend its values, its freedom, its democracy, just as we do every single day,” he went on.
“But I also hold Israel, as a friend and ally, to the same standard that we hold ourselves to. That is the standard which should be applied to Israel. That is the standard that I think, I fear they have fallen short of. We have got a responsibility as a country to make sure that we are good friends. But good friends are also critical friends when necessary.”
His comments come after Andy Burnham claimed the Labour Party “didn’t get it right” in its initial response to the October 7 attacks and Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, saying the party needed to “do better” under his leadership.
Streeting has replaced former paratrooper Dan Jarvis, who spent five weeks as defence secretary after taking over from John Healey.
Streeting said Burnham had appointed him to be a “moderniser and reformer”, adding that he would bring the same approach he adopted as Health Secretary, where he secured more state funding and reduced waiting times.
“It is to make sure we set policy and strategy … [to] give our armed services the resources they need to perform the tasks we ask them to undertake on behalf of our country and in defence of our values,” Streeting said.
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