While he blamed Hamas for the current situation and said the group should not be “rewarded for terror,” Rosenberg also delivered a stern criticism of two of the Israeli government’s far-right ministers, describing Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich as “stains on the Zionist project”.
He added that any minister whose statements have been put forward “as evidence of genocidal intent” in the International Court of Justice, as both men’s rhetoric has, should be sacked from the government.
Ben-Gvir and Smotrich have both been sanctioned by the UK in response to what the Foreign Office termed their “incitement” of violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank.
The JC understands that deputies voiced both criticism and support for Israel over the issue during the 100-minute meeting.
Meanwhile, ahead of the assembly on Tuesday, the United Synagogue (US) wrote to its deputies with talking points.
In a letter sent to US deputies and under-35 representatives, new US President Saul Taylor described how the “relentless onslaught on Israel in the British media and online is having a toxic effect on our community and poisoning minds against the world’s only Jewish state”.
Rosenberg acknowledged after the meeting that deputies had shared a “diverse range of views” and reaffirmed the Board’s commitment to building "a broad consensus across our community”. But, speaking during the Zoom call, one deputy raised concerns that the Board’s pre-meeting statement on the UK government’s Palestinian statehood announcement may have undermined the purpose of the discussion.
Earlier on Tuesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer announced that the UK intends to recognise a Palestinian state at a UN conference in September unless Israel agrees a ceasefire and commits to a two-state solution.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer annpunces plans to recognise a Palestinian state at No. 10 Downing Street on July 29, 202. (Image: Getty)Getty Images
In its initial response to the announcement, the Board said it was “seeking urgent clarification from the UK Government that it will not recognise a State of Palestine in September if Israel's hostages continue to remain in Hamas captivity or if Hamas continues to reject the ceasefire, as it did last week”.
“We must neither forsake the hostages nor reward Hamas terror or intransigence,” the statement said.
Following the emergency meeting, the Board released a second statement in which Rosenberg expanded on the representative body’s concerns without explicitly criticising the government.
He warned that unilateral recognition of Palestine “risks putting gestures ahead of substance.”
The Board’s “primary concern,” he said, was to “avoid empowering or rewarding Hamas or giving it incentives to continue evading a ceasefire”.
The Board is now “seeking clarification” that the UK will not recognise a Palestinian State “while Hamas fails to meet UK demands, including accepting a ceasefire and releasing the hostages,” Rosenberg went on.
While calling for Hamas to “immediately return all the hostages, accept a ceasefire, give up control of Gaza and disarm,” he reiterated that the Board “has long supported a negotiated two-state solution that ensures a secure Israel alongside a viable Palestinian State”.
He also underscored the need to hold the Palestinian Authority accountable and to confront Iran and its proxies, whom he said remained “implacably opposed to peace”.
But, he said the UK’s Jewish community “overwhelmingly rejects the appalling rhetoric and unacceptable proposals from some Israeli ministers, particularly in relation to the forced displacement of Gazans, as well as the intolerable violence perpetrated by extremist settlers in the West Bank, all of which are in complete contradiction to our values”.
“Our solidarity remains with the Israeli people. This war continues to take an unbearable toll on them, and we know that most want to see it end as soon as possible. It is also taking a toll on our own community, including through the unacceptable proliferation of hatred and discrimination directed at Jews in this country,” he concluded.
Palestinians in Gaza push through a fence to receive a hot meal at a charity kitchen in the Mawasi area of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip on July 22, 2025 (Photo AFP via Getty Images)AFP via Getty Images
However, referring to the controversy over the 36 deputies who signed a letter in the Financial Times criticising Israel’s actions in Gaza, a Board insider questioned Rosenberg’s statement: “Great statement, so 36 deputies are now being sanctioned for being three months early?”
Five deputies were suspended for their part in the letter and 31 were sent a letter of rebuke.
The Board’s statement was markedly different in tone from that of the Jewish Leadership Council (JLC), which issued a sharp rebuke of Starmer’s announcement.
In a statement, the JLC said recognition without clear preconditions amounted to a “reward from the UK for terrorism”.
“Unilateral recognition will not bring into existence a Palestinian state or peace for the people of the region. This is a position that the government has stated itself in recent weeks,” it claimed, adding:“Today's reversal, with a supposedly conditioned announcement, is a transparent attempt to sacrifice this fact in the hope of reducing domestic political pressure.
"The announcement has failed to make clear that the release of the hostages and end of Hamas rule is a condition of recognition. Unless this is made clear, recognition can only be seen as a reward from the UK for terrorism.”
And the Campaign Against Antisemitism (CAA) voiced similar concerns. In a statement, the organisation said the decision was “morally indefensible”.
“Sir Keir Starmer should be saying that he will take the issue of Palestinian statehood off the table if the hostages are not returned by September or sooner. Instead, he has decided to brandish recognition of a Palestinian state as a threat against the world’s only Jewish state as it seeks to retrieve the hostages still held nearly two years after the worst massacre of Jews since the Holocaust,” the campaign wrote on X.
CAA said the move “will only embolden extremists, including Hamas, who now know that they need only hang on until September – holding the hostages and looting aid – to receive their reward”.
“Recognition of a Palestinian state should never be wielded as a political weapon. Doing so in the aftermath of an antisemitic pogrom is not only reckless, it is shameful,” it concluded.
