US war on Iran: Starmer should have stood up to Trump - now he's complicit
When Benjamin Netanyahu launched his genocidal assault on Gaza in autumn 2023, Britain’s two main political parties formed a cross-party cartel in support of the bloodstained Israeli prime minister.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak offered Netanyahu his "unequivocal" backing. Sir Keir Starmer, then leader of the opposition, went further when he gave his backing for Israeli plans for collective punishment of Palestinians in Gaza. Starmer refused to back a ceasefire until February 2024, by which time tens of thousands of civilians had been slaughtered.
On the far right, both Nigel Farage, leader of Reform UK, and far-right agitator Tommy Robinson threw their weight behind the Israeli offensive, now viewed by most experts as a genocide.
Britain’s main parties united once more in support of Israel when US President Donald Trump and Netanyahu launched their illegal assault on Iran on Saturday.
But this time there was a difference: we have full-throated opposition to the war.
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Not from the Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, a frenzied supporter of Israel and the United States. Still less from Farage and the far right.
The British far right, which claims to stand up for British sovereignty, emerged over the weekend as an uncritical appendage of Donald Trump’s Maga movement in the United States.
A new arrival
Opposition comes from the dazzling new arrival on the political stage - Green Party leader Zack Polanski.
Less than 48 hours after his party’s historic victory over Labour in the Gorton and Denton by-election, Polanski emerged as the only frontline British politician calling for Britain to stay out of America and Israel’s illegal, stupid and barbarous war on Iran.
With Prime Minister Starmer frozen and the Tory leader warmongering for Trump, Polanski instantly warned that "we now face being dragged into another illegal war in the Middle East." He added:"People in this country do not want this and it must not be allowed to happen."
Labour has labelled Polanski an "extremist" and there are the usual bad faith attempts to smear him as an antisemite - hard to do since Polanski is Jewish.
Defining moments
Opinion polls show the opposite. This week, a YouGov poll show that half of Britons do not want to be dragged into a war run by Trump, a convicted felon, and Netanyahu, still on the run from war crimes charges levelled by the International Criminal Court. Only 28 percent backed the war.
Starmer made Britain complicit in the destruction of Gaza. Now he’s made Britain complicit in Trump and Netanyahu’s illegal war on Iran
The public signalled this over the weekend as Polanski’s Green Party surged in the polls and now stand higher than Labour.
This is no surprise.
In the whirlwind of international crisis, moments arise that define a leader’s mettle.
Let’s compare Polanski’s instant clarity with Starmer’s unhappy and bewildered weekend performance.
Polanski rose to the occasion. Starmer dithered, hid behind equivocal statements, and only woke up when personally slighted by Trump.
Imagine the scene in the Commons on Monday had Starmer displayed Polanski’s clarity and moral courage.
Starmer could have arrived in parliament not to defend a belated U-turn over US use of British bases - but to lay out a vision of international justice and decency.
"We will not commit our military personnel to unlawful action," he eventually declared - a line that arrived far too late.
Had he uttered those words proactively Starmer could have galvanized public support, positioned the UK as a principled actor on the global stage, and given meaning to his premiership.
Starmer is a mess of contradiction.
War of obliteration
His government won’t condemn the US and Israel for its illegal assault on Iran. It does condemn Iran for retaliating.
Starmer won’t join Israel and the United States in bombing Iran. But he will allow the US to use UK bases to enable their war of aggression.
Starmer says this is "defensive". There’s nothing defensive about permitting the United States to use British military bases.
One of them is Diego Garcia, which can be used to house B52 military bombers.
Spain will not allow the United States to use its bases. Starmer could have done this. He lacked the courage, and Trump treats him with contempt all the same.
The British prime minister had plenty of time to work out his response, since Trump telegraphed what he wanted weeks ago when he namechecked which UK bases were vital for his illegal campaign.
Starmer made Britain complicit in the destruction of Gaza. Now he’s made Britain complicit in Trump and Netanyahu’s illegal war on Iran.
In the process he’s made Iranian retaliation against British soldiers (and UK allies which house our bases such as Cyprus) legal under international law.
This is turning into a war of obliteration as Israel and the United States target schools, hospitals and civilian infrastructure, just as they did in Gaza. Courtesy of Starmer Britain is playing a role in this.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
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