Save the Children has clashed with the UK government after posting on social media that outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer was complicit in the deaths of thousands of civilians in the Israel-Gaza war. The charity posted a mocked-up blue plaque on X, reading: "History will not forget complicity. Keir Starmer witnessed 73,000 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, including 21,000 children, and kept supplying arms to Israel." The post had been viewed more than 300,000 times by Wednesday afternoon.
Government demands explanation
Foreign Office officials are understood to have contacted Save the Children soon after the post went live to demand an explanation. The government provides a significant proportion of the charity's funding—about £114m since the beginning of 2024, according to The Guardian. A government source said the post could increase anxiety among MPs already worried about their security after the killing of former Conservative MP Ann Widdecombe, who was killed in a "targeted attack" with a possible political motive.
"This is deeply irresponsible rhetoric from Save the Children at a time when MPs are already fearful for their safety," the source said. "This to a prime minister who has recognized the state of Palestine and put so much pressure on other countries to come with us supporting Gaza, making sure we ringfence cash for Palestinians. It's beyond the pale." A minister added: "Divisive hyperbole and misinformation like this are completely unfitting for a children's charity. This kind of language makes the concept of complicity utterly meaningless, which does no favours to the many children at risk of atrocities around the world."
Context of the Gaza death toll
Gaza's health ministry said this week that more than 73,000 Palestinians have died since the conflict began on 7 October 2023, after Hamas attacked Israel. The death toll includes 1,000 people killed since the start of a ceasefire in October last year. Starmer's government placed some restrictions on arms sales to Israel in 2024 but stopped short of a complete suspension.
Coalition demands
Save the Children is part of a coalition of 17 humanitarian organisations that issued a joint statement on Wednesday calling on the incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, to take "decisive action on Gaza and the occupied West Bank" when he takes office next week. Central demands include a complete suspension of arms sales to Israel and trade sanctions until alleged breaches of international law are addressed. The group also wants the government to publish its response to the International Court of Justice's advisory opinion on aid provision in Gaza and set out a "clear timetable for implementing its recommendations."
Liz Bradshaw, a senior conflict and humanitarian advocacy adviser at Save the Children UK, said: "For far too long, Palestinian children have endured the devastating consequences of relentless violence, displacement and the destruction of the basic services they need to survive. No child should ever wish for death so they can eat in heaven, while other children are asking our staff to include them in photographs so they will be remembered if they are killed."
George Graham, the executive director of global impact at Save the Children UK, said: "Our campaign aims to highlight this government's political legacy of inaction and complicity. The government has taken some steps to try to advance the protection of Palestinian children, but these have fallen well below the UK's moral and legal obligations. This stands in stark contrast to the active measures the government has taken on arms, accountability, and trade in relation to Sudan and Ukraine, for example."
Government defense
Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper defended the government's record on Gaza when she appeared at the foreign affairs select committee on Tuesday, saying it had suspended the previous government's negotiations on a trade deal and sanctioned members of the Israeli cabinet.
