Main events on August 20th
- Israel says it has begun a new offensive to seize Gaza City and forcibly displace about one million residents, carrying out widespread attacks that killed dozens of Palestinians and unveiling plans to call up tens of thousands of army reservists.
- Hamas has denounced the Israeli military’s assault on the city, accusing Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu of disregarding international mediators’ efforts to reach a ceasefire.
- The US has imposed new sanctions on International Criminal Court officials over the court’s investigation into Israeli war crimes in Gaza, drawing criticism from rights groups and the UN.
- World leaders have condemned Israel’s approval of the so-called E1 settlement expansion project in the occupied West Bank, saying the plan will sever the Palestinian territory and effectively destroy hopes for a two-state solution.
Kneecap rapper, author Sally Rooney pose headache to UK govt, BBC over Gaza
Kneecap rappers and best-selling author Sally Rooney have become the symbol of Irish solidarity for Palestinians as they fight back attempts to silence them in their criticism of Israel’s military offensive in Gaza. Rifat Jawaid looks at the phenomenon and warns that this doesn’t augur well for the current Labour government of the UK and the publicly-funded broadcaster, the BBC.
We confronted top Israel lobbyist about Labour donations
David Lammy held an off the record meeting with Sir Trevor Chinn, an influential businessman and one of Britain’s leading pro-Israel lobbyists, Declassified can reveal. The meeting took place on 11 February 2025 but was not recorded in official transparency data published by the Foreign Office. Lammy’s sole public appointment on that day was a meeting with the UN Emergency Relief Coordinator to discuss “humanitarian crises around the globe” including the situation in Gaza. The Foreign Office only released details about Lammy’s meeting with Chinn in response to a Freedom of Information request issued by Declassified. It said this was a “political meeting” and no minutes from the discussion were taken.
The Foreign Office also disclosed that Middle East minister Hamish Falconer met with Chinn on 18 March 2025 in another rendezvous that was not recorded in transparency data. Lammy, Falconer and Chinn did not respond to questions about whether the meetings focussed on Israel. Chinn said in 2013: “I’ve spent my entire life working for Israel”. Since the 1980s, he has funded Labour Friends of Israel and Conservative Friends of Israel. He has played a leading role in Britain Israel Communications and Research Centre (BICOM), previously described by the Guardian as “Britain’s most active pro-Israel lobbying organisation”.
Doorstepping Chinn Declassified recently revealed that Chinn – now 90 – met with a top British diplomat to discuss arms exports to Israel despite the government initially claiming the purpose of the meeting was “to discuss geopolitics”. Chinn did not respond to Declassified’s request for comment on that story. So when we saw him disembarking a taxi outside the Chatham House think-tank in London last month, we quickly asked him for an interview. Chinn, gripping a copy of the Financial Times, declined our request. “You’re a very generous benefactor to the Labour Party,” we said as he was ushered inside. “What do you think about the situation in Gaza at the moment? Why do you donate so much money to the Labour Party?” He ignored our questions, which related to his £50,000 donation towards Keir Starmer’s Labour leadership campaign in 2020. Chinn’s donation was not disclosed until after the election had taken place. He has also donated to key members of Starmer’s cabinet including chancellor Rachel Reeves, deputy prime minister Angela Rayner, health secretary Wes Streeting, education secretary Bridget Phillipson, culture secretary Lisa Nandy, and Lammy.
Chinn entered the building on the heels of Israeli opposition politician Yair Golan, who was in the capital for meetings with politicians, including Falconer, and local Zionist organisations. Golan said in October 2023 that Israel’s starvation of Gaza was “completely legitimate”, before later criticising Israeli forces for killing “children as a hobby”. As a Brigadier General in the IDF, Golan was disciplined in 2007 for using Palestinian civilians as human shields.
https://www.declassifieduk.org/david-lammy-held-off-the-books-meeting-with-pro-israel-lobbyist/
