2 Labour MPs Denied Entry Into Israel, Detained; UK Foreign Secretary Calls It 'Unacceptable'

British Foreign Secretary David Lammy condemned Israel's detention and entry denial of two UK legislators, calling it "unacceptable" and "deeply troubling."

File photo of Abtisam Mohamed (left) and Yuan Yang (right)

Source : X

David Lammy, the foreign secretary for Britain, said on Saturday that Israel's detention and refusal to allow entry for two UK legislators was 'unacceptable' and 'deeply troubling', BBC reported.

British media stated that Yuan Yang and Abtisam Mohamed, members of the ruling Labour Party, were deported after being prevented from entering Israel after taking a plane from London. Yang represents Earley and Woodley, and Mohamed is the MP for Sheffield Central.

According to an Israeli immigration ministry statement, as quoted by Sky News, the detained parliamentarians were rejected because they were suspected of plans to "document the activities of security forces and spread anti-Israel hatred".

The Israeli immigration ministry said that the MPs were accompanied by two assistants and during questioning, they claimed that they were visiting Israel "as part of an official parliamentary delegation". However, terming their claim as 'false', the Interior Minister Moshe Arbel denied entry to all four individuals.

What David Lammy Said?

Lammy, in a statement to Sky News on Saturday, said, "It is unacceptable, counterproductive, and deeply concerning that two British MPs on a parliamentary delegation to Israel have been detained and refused entry by the Israeli authorities."

"I have made clear to my counterparts in the Israeli government that this is no way to treat British parliamentarians, and we have been in contact with both MPs tonight to offer our support."

"The UK government's focus remains securing a return to the ceasefire and negotiations to stop the bloodshed, free the hostages and end the conflict in Gaza."

After a short-lived truce with Hamas ended last month, Israeli forces returned to full-scale operations. Since then, fresh strikes have killed at least 1,249 people, according to Gaza's health ministry.  With this, more than 50,000 Palestinians have died since the conflict started.

The October 7, 2023 attack on Israel that sparked the war resulted in 1,218 deaths, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.