A mother holding a baby boy so thin from starvation you can see his skeleton. The lifeless bodies of children killed while queueing for water. Emaciated hostages, still held captive by Hamas almost two years after those appalling terror attacks.
These images and countless more have horrified us all in recent months. The humanitarian crisis in Gaza must stop. The famine must end. The hostages must be returned home.
There is one man, more than anyone else, who has the power to make it happen. One man who could pick up the phone to Benjamin Netanyahu, Israel’s prime minister, and tell him to end the aid blockade that is causing suffering and starvation on such an appalling scale. One man who could use his influence on Qatar and other Gulf states to help secure the urgent release of Hamas’s hostages.
Donald Trump could do those things today if he chose to. He has more power than anyone else finally to force a ceasefire and put Israel and Palestine on the path to a lasting peace with a two-state solution.
But so far, he’s decided not to. Instead, he’s given Netanyahu his full support. Last week, when he was making his bogus boasts about ending six wars, Trump said Ukraine is “the only one left” – showing he doesn’t even see what’s happening in Gaza as a war he wants to stop.
In three weeks’ time, Trump will touch down in the UK for his second state visit, which will include a state banquet at Windsor Castle hosted by King Charles.
One of the great privileges of being the leader of my party is that my wife, Emily, and I are invited to attend state banquets. Receiving an invitation from the king is an enormous honour, and I take very seriously my duty to our sovereign. As a member of parliament, I have proudly sworn by almighty God that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to His Majesty King Charles, his heirs and successors. To refuse an invitation like this goes against all of my instincts.
But having thought and prayed long and hard about it with Emily, I have come to the conclusion that on this occasion I must refuse.
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