She praised Lord Cameron for bringing “a lot of experience to the role” of Foreign Secretary but said: “What I am very concerned about is a Foreign Office establishment view taking hold of our foreign policy. And by that I mean an anti-Israel sentiment, a pro-Palestine approach to this conflict, and I think that that is very concerning.”
She said there was a “tendency” inside “the Foreign Office establishment” to “attribute an equivalence between Israeli defensive measures and the terrorism of Hamas”.
She said the Oct 7 attacks and the Israeli response “cannot be compared” and insisted Israel was using military action “in legitimate self-defence”.
Mrs Braverman, who also served as attorney general, said Israel was using “sophisticated technology to minimise civilian casualties” and had enabled “the receipt and distribution of aid into the Gaza Strip”.
She added: “To suggest that Israel is somehow impeding the operation of international law, obstructing the distribution of aid or is behaving in a way that is unlawful, does a great disservice to the battle that we are witnessing.”
Mrs Braverman suggested that, had she not been sacked by Rishi Sunak following a row over anti-Israel marches on Armistice day, she would have passed legislation that would have given ministers the power to ban protests regularly taking place in London.
“I actually think that, had there been a more robust approach in the early days of those marches, we would not be seeing this phenomenon of mass extremism out on our streets, unprecedented levels of anti-Semitism on our streets, the routine harassment and racism,” she said.
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.
