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Zarah Sultana confronts the BBC for platforming war criminals

On 22 June, the BBC‘s Laura Kuenssberg interviewed suspended Labour MP Zarah Sultana. The interview highlighted why Labour is reluctant to readmit her, as she didn’t flinch from criticising Israel and its ongoing genocide – something Keir Starmer refuses to do as a lackey of US interests. Sultana also wasn’t afraid to hold the BBC accountable for platforming prominent Israelis who have defended and whitewashed the ongoing atrocities in Gaza:

Israel’s president and genocidal intent

Sultana took issue with the BBC for interviewing Israeli president Isaac Herzog. The Palestine Chronicle wrote the following on Herzog in January 2024:

Israeli President, Isaac Herzog, has become the subject of criminal complaints during his visit to the Davos based World Economic Forum, say Swiss prosecutors.

This comes as South Africa accuses Israel of committing the crime of Genocide at the International Court of Justice, where Herzog’s comments were quoted to prove Israeli genocidal intent.

Although the position of the president in Israel is considered primarily a ceremonial role, with the Prime Minister bearing the pivotal decision-making power, it is still an influential position and Isaac Herzog directly reflects state policy.

In this respect, he is largely being considered complicit in the ongoing war crimes that the Israeli military is committing against the people of Gaza.

It added:

One comprehensive database was compiled by Law for Palestine – which collated Israeli genocidal intent from every level of society, drawing from various politicians, military leaders, prominent TV personalities, activists and soldiers who are fighting in Gaza – has been an invaluable tool at proving intent and the complicity of those driving Israeli policy.

Infamously, Isaac Herzog remarked that “It is an entire nation out there that is responsible,” for the Hamas military offensive of October 7.

He also went on to state the following: “It is not true this rhetoric about civilians not being aware, not involved. It’s absolutely not true. They could have risen up. They could have fought against that evil regime which took over Gaza in a coup d’etat.”

The clear inference here was that after Israel had announced its intent to fight what Israeli defense minister, Yoav Gallant, called “human animals” by cutting off water, food, fuel and electricity, that the civilian population of Gaza is complicit in the conduct of Hamas and should suffer as a result.

Holding a group responsible for the actions of individuals is known as ‘collective punishment’ – a war crime.

“This is a man that should be at The Hague; not platformed on the BBC”

Speaking to Kuenssberg, Sultana said:

This is the head of a state that is committing genocide, where over 55,000 people have been killed in Gaza; over 17,000 children. In fact, after the October 7 attacks… Herzog himself accused all of Gaza’s population of collective responsibility. He said ‘the entire nation is responsible. The rhetoric that civilians are not involved, it’s absolutely not true.’ And ICJ judges included that genocidal intent in their ruling. This is a man that should be at The Hague; not platformed on the BBC.

At this point, Kuenssberg butted in to say:

That legal process has not concluded yet. There is no legal ruling that they are engaged in genocide in that way.

There’s no legal ruling that the sky is blue, and yet we can all clearly see that it is. Should we wait until after Israel has exterminated or expelled all the Palestinians before we speak out?

Kuenssberg then faced another interruption, from Piers Morgan no less (a man whose overall pro-Israel bias is clear). He pointed out:

But they are they are admitting ethnic cleansing… I mean, if you listen to Smotrich, the finance minister… You know, he’s one of the senior members of that cabinet talking brazenly and openly about cleansing Gaza of all Palestinians. That is ethnic cleansing. That is a war crime.

So, you know, I say to Israel – and to Israelis – are you comfortable with what your government is doing in Gaza? Because there seems to be no endgame. Bill Clinton has come out and said that, in his estimation, Benjamin Netanyahu is prolonging all this warfare because it will stop him being held accountable for October 7 and also for the corruption charges he faces in a criminal court

‘Deeply complicit’

Sultana wasn’t just critical of the BBC, saying the UK is:

deeply complicit in what is happening in The Middle East.

Staggeringly, Kuenssberg interrupted to ask:

Why do you say that?

This woman was the BBC‘s political editor for several years, and yet she’s acting like she just woke up from a coma. And not just any coma, either – to be ignorant to Britain’s misadventures in the Middle East, she must have slipped into unconsciousness some time before the Crusades.

Ignoring Kuenssberg’s feigned ignorance, Sultana continued:

When we talk about arms sales, the UK government suspended 30 out of 350 arms licenses. 90% are still active, including components of lethal F-35 fighter jets. Now the government will talk about directly or indirectly, there are F-35 components that are leaving RAF bases in this country, are being transferred through Heathrow and other airports in this country, that are going to Israel.

Every bomb that is dropped, we have to ask the question… those lives that are being killed, is the UK complicit? Are we complicit in that? And the evidence says yes, we are. Hence, there is a court case where the UK government has been defending sending these components to Israel.

And we should be suspending all arms sales. We should [not be] trading at all with this Israeli government. In fact, we’ve allowed the US, in particular with the Iran context, to fly through our airspace. In ’73, Edward Heath, a Tory prime minister, refused to allow US planes to go through UK airspace to take part in defending Israel.

Confronting the establishment

The UK political and media establishment have whitewashed countless atrocities over the years, and Sultana is brave to stand against their blatant dishonesty. We really could use many more politicians like her in parliament. With Starmer dedicated to sidelining individuals like Sultana and tanking Labour’s popularity, however, it’s more likely we’re going to get a parliament filled with Nigel Farage clones.

And if you’re thinking that might be better for Britain, just be aware that Farage is even more blatantly Israel First than Starmer:

What a sad state this country is in.

Featured image via the BBC

By The Canary

This post was originally published on Canary.