“If you want evidence of government madness, it appears that Foreign Office lawyers are busily canvassing the idea — which has not yet, as far as I can tell, been rejected by the foreign secretary himself,” Johnson added.
Johnson’s swipe at Cameron comes amid a heated debate in the U.K. about whether to continue to allow arms exports to Israel after the killing of World Central Kitchen aid workers in an Israeli strike.
The Cabinet is reportedly split on the issue as government lawyers mull whether Israel is in breach of international law in its Gaza campaign.
“He seems to have gone into a kind of purdah on the subject,” Johnson said of Cameron on arms exports. Ending such help to Israel would, he said, be “willing the military defeat of Israel and the victory of Hamas.”
Long-running feud
Johnson’s remarks also resume a long-running rivalry between the pair of former prime ministers, dating back to when the two men attended the elite British private school Eton.
The duo’s best known rivalry is taking opposing sides on Brexit, with the U.K.’s vote to leave ending Remain-supporting Cameron’s premiership and hastening Johnson’s rise to the top of British politics.
Cameron took a swipe at Johnson when he returned to the frontline of British politics and joined the Foreign Office last November, joking he had been no “Cincinnatus hovering over my plough” while out of government — an arcane reference to Johnson’s resignation speech as PM.
Johnson once called Cameron a “girly swot” for getting a first class degree at Oxford, while Johnson attained second-class honors.
William Turner is a seasoned U.K. correspondent with a deep understanding of domestic affairs. With a passion for British politics and culture, he provides insightful analysis and comprehensive coverage of events within the United Kingdom.
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