David Lammy has hit out at Israel after it refused entry to two Labour MPs.
Earley and Woodley’s Yuan Yang and Sheffield Central’s Abtisam Mohamed were rejected after flying to Ben Gurion airport from Luton with two aides over the weekend.
They had been planning to travel to the Palestinian territory the West Bank, but were denied entry after being questioned.
They were suspected of planning to “document the activities of security forces and spread anti-Israel hatred”, according to a statement from the Israeli immigration ministry, cited by Sky News and the BBC.
The UK’s foreign office said they were acting as part of a parliamentary delegation. but Israel claimed any such group had not been acknowledged by any Israeli official.
The foreign secretary said it was “unacceptable” for Israel to have banned these two MPs.
In a statement released on Saturday night, Lammy 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.”
His comments stand in stark contrast to those from Tory leader Kemi Badenoch, who told the BBC this morning that countries “should be able to control their borders”.
She added: “What I think is shocking is that we have MPs in Labour [who] other countries won’t allow through. I think that’s very significant.”
Meanwhile, Labour chair of the foreign affairs select committee Emily Thornberry told the BBC that Israel’s actions were an “insult to Britain” and “an insult to parliament”.
Yang and Mohamed left Israel on Sunday morning.
They said in a joint statement that they were “astounded” to have been denied entry , and said it was “vital” parliamentarians are able to “witness, firsthand, the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory”.
The MPs said their trip had been organised with UK charities who had “over a decade of experience in taking parliamentary delegations.”
“We are two, out of scores of MPs, who have spoken out in parliament in recent months on the Israel-Palestine conflict and the importance of complying with international humanitarian law,” they said.
“Parliamentarians should feel free to speak truthful in the House of Commons, without fear of being targeted.”
The war in Gaza began when Hamas militants killed 1,200 people on Israeli soil in October 2023 and took a further 250 people hostage.
Israel declared war on the Palestinian territory and launched a land offensive.
Violence has erupted on the West Bank too, as Israeli forces pressed ahead with raids.
A brief ceasefire was implemented earlier this year in Gaza but it has been broken.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says more than 50,000 people have been killed since the war began.