UK must not play any role in displacement of Gazans: Palestinian envoy

By Dilara Hamit

The head of the Palestinian mission to the UK expressed indignation Monday over a report that Israel intends to use former British Prime Minister Tony Blair to mediate with Western countries to persuade them to take in refugees from the Gaza Strip after the war.

"Israeli media has reported that former British PM Tony Blair visited Israel last week, met several Israeli officials including (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahu and is taking on a role aiding Israel to implement the mass expulsion and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from their homeland under the guise of ‘voluntary migration,’” Ambassador Husam Zomlot said on X.

"We call on the UK government to ensure that no British figure will in any way take part in Israel’s ongoing crimes against humanity. We are adamant that any who do will have to bear the legal consequences of such immoral and criminal acts against the Palestinian people."

Israel's Channel 12 said that Blair made a secret visit to Israel last week, holding confidential meetings with Netanyahu and war cabinet member Benny Gantz to discuss the issue.

But a source close to Blair denied the report, telling The Jerusalem Post that the claims of Blair being connected to the displacement of Palestinians were baseless. The source emphasized that such a discussion never took place and that Blair would not entertain such a proposal.

Israel launched relentless air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip in the wake of a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7.

At least 21,822 Palestinians have since been killed and 56,451 others injured, according to Gaza’s health authorities, while nearly 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the Hamas attack.

The Israeli onslaught has left Gaza in ruins, with 60% of the enclave's infrastructure damaged or destroyed and nearly 2 million residents displaced amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine.