“Any attempt to hinder their work would not only undermine accountability for atrocity crimes committed in Gaza but would weaken the rule of law and international justice as a whole.”
Letter to Foreign Secretary David Cameron, signed by 105 Parliamentarians
By Labour Outlook
Following the announcement that the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, Karin Khan, was seeking arrest warrants for the leaders of Israel and Hamas last week, a cross-party Group of MPs and Lords have written to the Foreign Secretary calling on “the UK Government to do all it can to support the International Criminal Court.”
The letter, organised by Labour MPs Richard Burgon and Imran Hussain and signed by 105 MPs from 11 different political parties, follows the “important decision of the ICC Chief Prosecutor to issue applications for arrest warrants for a number of Israeli and Hamas leaders.”
The Parliamentarians also call on the Foreign Secretary “to condemn any threats and attempts to undermine the independence and impartiality of the International Criminal Court in its investigations into crimes in Gaza” after threatswere issued to the Court in recent weeks including from US senators who warned against there would be sanctions if the ICC issued arrest warrants against Israeli leaders.
The letter also states that “there is mounting evidence that Israel has committed clear and obvious violations of international law in Gaza and strongly believe that those responsible must be held to account.”
The signatories have called on the Government “to take a clear stance against any attempts to intimidate an independent and impartial international court” and shown support for the independence of the court, demanding that “the Court, its Prosecutor, and all its staff must be free to pursue justice without fear or favour. Any attempt to hinder their work would not only undermine accountability for atrocity crimes committed in Gaza but would weaken the rule of law and international justice as a whole.”
Richard Burgon MP, a former Shadow Justice Secretary said:
“While our Government has rightly condemned the war crimes committed by Hamas on 7 October, it has repeatedly refused to condemn the war crimes committed by Israel in Gaza. At every stage, our Government has failed to fulfil its moral duty to do everything it can to help save lives and prevent suffering in Gaza. It must not fail again. It must back the ICC in ensuring that there is no impunity for war crimes and it must stand up to those seeking to impede justice.”
Imran Hussain MP said:
“The International Criminal Court Prosecutor’s decision to pursue arrest warrants for war crimes carried out since October 7th is a vital step towards securing justice for the victims. Our Government must do the right thing, defend the court’s integrity and condemn any attempts to undermine its work. It is clear that Israel is carrying out war crimes and our Government must take a stance for the rules-based order and insist on accountability for those perpetrating war crimes. That is not only key to securing justice but also in helping prevent more crimes.”
You can read a full text of the letter and see the full list of signatories below.
Dear Foreign Secretary,
We write following the important decision of the ICC Chief Prosecutor to issue applications for arrest warrants for a number of Israeli and Hamas leaders.
We urge you to condemn any threats and attempts to undermine the independence and impartiality of the International Criminal Court in its investigations into crimes in Gaza. We also call on the UK Government to do all it can to support the Court in ensuring accountability and justice for the victims of these crimes.
As you know, the International Criminal Court (ICC), governed by the Rome Statute, was established to help end impunity for the perpetrators of the most serious crimes of concern to the international community. The ICC has the mandate to investigate and prosecute individuals for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
This mandate includes the Situation in Palestine and, since 2021, the Office of the Prosecutor has been investigating crimes alleged to have been committed there by all actors over the past decade.
This investigation includes alleged crimes being carried out in Israel’s current war in Gaza. We believe that there is mounting evidence that Israel has committed clear and obvious violations of international law in Gaza and strongly believe that those responsible must be held to account.
So we are deeply alarmed that earlier this month, the Office of the Prosecutor felt compelled to issue a statement calling for “all attempts to impede, intimidate or improperly influence its officials cease immediately.” While the Prosecutor’s Office did not explicitly refer to threats made following press reports about the potential issuing of arrest warrants for crimes committed in Gaza, the context was clear.
It is vital that the Government takes a clear stance against any attempts to intimidate an independent and impartial international court. Not only could such actions be a crime under Article 70 of the Rome Statute, but they would be a blatant attempt to prevent accountability and to impede justice.
The Court, its Prosecutor, and all its staff must be free to pursue justice without fear or favour. We hope you agree that any attempt to hinder their work would not only undermine accountability for atrocity crimes committed in Gaza but would weaken the rule of law and international justice as a whole. It is therefore essential that the Government works to prevent this.
Yours sincerely,
Richard Burgon MP and Imran Hussain MP
Diane Abbott MP
Debbie Abrahams MP
Tahir Ali MP
Rosena Allin-Khan MP
Hannah Bardell MP
Paula Barker MP
Órfhlaith Begley MP
Apsana Begum MP
Olivia Blake MP
Baroness Christine Blower
Steven Bonnar MP
Mickey Brady MP
Deidre Brock MP
Alan Brown MP
Baroness Pauline Bryan
Dawn Butler MP
Ian Byrne MP
Liam Byrne MP
Stuart C McDonald MP
Amy Callaghan MP
Baroness Shami Chakrabarti
Douglas Chapman MP
Joanna Cherry KC MP
Jeremy Corbyn MP
Ronnie Cowan MP
Baroness Caroline Cox
Lord Bryn Davies
Martyn Day MP
Marsha De Cordova MP
Dave Doogan MP
Allan Dorans MP
Lord Alf Dubs
Lord Hugh Dykes
Colum Eastwood MP
Stephen Farry MP
Marion Fellows MP
John Finucane MP
George Galloway MP
Barry Gardiner MP
Patricia Gibson MP
Michelle Gildernew MP
Patrick Grady MP
Peter Grant MP
Claire Hanna MP
Chris Hazzard MP
Drew Hendry MP
Lord John Hendy
Kate Hollern MP
Rachel Hopkins MP
Rupa Huq MP
Lord Qurban Hussain
Baroness Meral Hussein-Ece
Kim Johnson MP
Mary Kelly Foy MP
Afzal Khan MP
Ian Lavery MP
Chris Law MP
Clive Lewis MP
Baroness Ruth Lister
Mark Logan MP
Rebecca Long Bailey MP
Caroline Lucas MP
Kenny MacAskill MP
Rachael Maskell MP
Paul Maskey MP
Andy McDonald MP
John McDonnell MP
Anne McLaughlin MP
Ian Mearns MP
Baroness Nosheena Mobarik
Francie Molloy MP
Carol Monaghan MP
Grahame Morris MP
Gavin Newlands MP
Brendan O’Hara MP
Kate Osamor MP
Kate Osborne MP
Sarah Owen MP
Jess Phillips MP
Anum Qaisar MP
Yasmin Qureshi MP
Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP
Marie Rimmer MP
Baroness Margaret Ritchie
Lloyd Russell-Moyle MP
Liz Saville Roberts MP
Naz Shah MP
Tommy Sheppard MP
Lord Prem Sikka
Lord Indarjit Singh
Chris Stephens MP
Zarah Sultana MP
Sam Tarry MP
Alison Thewliss MP
Owen Thompson MP
Richard Thomson MP
Jon Trickett MP
Baroness Manzila Uddin
Claudia Webbe MP
Philippa Whitford MP
Mick Whitley MP
Nadia Whittome MP
Beth Winter MP
Lord Tony Woodley
Mohammad Yasin MP
- Richard Burgon is the MP for Leeds East, the Secretary of the Socialist Campaign Group of Labour MPs and a regular contributor to Labour Outlook. You can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
- Imran Hussain MP is the MP for Bradford East, you can follow him on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
