Labour is to immediately recognise Palestinian state

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The British parliament voted to recognise the Palestinian state in October 2014. Labour now says it will carry it out

LABOUR’S Manifesto declares that it will ‘Immediately recognise the State of Palestine.’

It adds that Labour will ‘Introduce a War Powers Act to ensure that no prime minister can bypass Parliament to commit to conventional military action – unlike the Conservatives.’

Labour pledges to ‘Establish a judge-led inquiry into our country’s alleged complicity in rendition and torture, and the operation of secret courts.

‘Issue a formal apology for the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, and hold a public review into Britain’s role in the Amritsar massacre.

‘Allow the people of the Chagos Islands and their descendants the right to return to the lands from which they should never have been removed.

‘Uphold the human rights of the people of West Papua and recognise the rights of the people of Western Sahara.’

It adds: ‘We will immediately suspend the sale of arms to Saudi Arabia for use in Yemen and to Israel for arms used in violation of the human rights of Palestinian civilians, and conduct a root-and-branch reform of our arms exports regime so ministers can never again turn a blind eye to British-made weapons being used to target innocent civilians.’

It adds: ‘We will work through the UN and the Commonwealth to insist on the protection of human rights for Sri Lanka’s minority Tamil and Muslim populations.

It continues: ‘Labour is committed to a comprehensive peace in the Middle East based on a two-state solution – a secure Israel alongside a secure and viable state of Palestine.

‘There can be no military solution to this conflict, which must be settled on the basis of justice and international law. All sides must avoid taking action that would make peace harder to achieve.’

It goes on: ‘Labour will take all lawful action necessary to counter and confront all forms of terrorism, and we will advocate a long-term multinational political strategy, led by regional actors, to tackle the spread of extremism.’

However, the Manifesto continues that ‘Labour supports the renewal of the Trident nuclear deterrent …

‘Labour’s commitment to spend at least 2% of GDP on defence will guarantee that our armed forces are versatile and capable of fulfilling the full range of roles and obligations.

‘We will scrap the public sector pay cap, which resulted in a real-terms pay cut for our armed forces, ensure decent housing for forces members and their families, and guarantee better access for all forces children to good quality local schools.’