Starmer says sparks from Middle East conflict ‘light touchpapers’ at home

Sir Keir Starmer speaks during his visit to the European Commission headquarters in Brussels last week
Sir Keir Starmer has called on all sides to ‘do everything in their power to step back from the brink’ - Benjamin Cremel/Getty Images

Sir Keir Starmer on Saturday night warned the Middle East conflict risks lighting the “touchpapers in our own communities” and urged parties to “act with restraint and return to political, not military, solutions”.

The Prime Minister, writing in The Sunday Times, called on all sides to “do everything in their power to step back from the brink” ahead of the Oct 7 anniversary.

He added that “a better future will not be won by traumatising, orphaning, and displacing another generation”, in an apparent warning to Israel.

An Israeli military official indicated a “significant” response would be staged in response to Iran’s attack last Tuesday, in which it fired almost 200 ballistic missiles at Israel in revenge for the killing of the Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah late last month.

Sir Keir described Iran’s “outrageous attack” on Israel as bringing us to a “dangerous inflection point”.

He added: “A direct Iran-Israel conflict would have devastating consequences for the people of the Middle East and across the world.

“All sides must do everything in their power to step back from the brink and avert it. Because the anniversary of the October 7 attacks should remind us of the cost of political failure.”

He raised concerns over the impact of the conflict in the UK and said: “The flames from this deadly conflict now threaten to consume the region. And the sparks light touchpapers in our own communities here at home.

“Since October 7, we have watched vile hatred against Jews and Muslims rise in our communities.

“So we will not look the other way as Jewish children are afraid to wear their school uniforms, Jewish shops are defaced, or Jews targeted on the streets. And we will not ignore it when mosques are attacked, and British Muslims are assaulted or told to ‘go home’.

“Any attack on a minority is an attack on our proud values of tolerance and respect. We will not stand for it.”

The Community Security Trust, a safeguarding charity, said: “It is no surprise that this would be seen as a time of increased risk for the community, with levels of anti-Jewish hatred still running unacceptably high.

“In particular, Hezbollah and Iran have a long record of terrorism against Jewish and Israeli targets around the world, especially as a form of reprisal, and the possibility that they may look to do something overseas to avenge Nasrallah’s death forms an important part of our discussions with police.”