Foreign
Theresa May Bids Farewell Before New Prime Minister Boris Johnson Enters No 10
Theresa May has delivered a farewell speech in Downing Street before tendering her resignation to the Queen.
She wished new Prime Minister Boris Johnson and his government well, adding: “Their successes will be our country’s successes.”
Earlier, Mrs May faced MPs’ questions for the final time and looked visibly emotional as she left to applause.
Mr Johnson will speak outside No 10 too, before announcing several senior cabinet appointments.
He is expected to use the opportunity to increase the number of women in full cabinet positions and boost the representation of ethnic minorities.
During his journey to Buckingham Palace to accept the Queen’s invitation to form a government, Mr Johnson’s car was briefly held up by protesters from Greenpeace, who formed a human chain across The Mall.
Mrs May gave her final speech in Downing Street – her husband Philip alongside her – before heading to Buckingham Palace.
She said serving as prime minister had been “the greatest honour” and thanked all those who had worked with her.
“This is a country of aspiration and opportunity, and I hope that every young girl who has seen a woman prime minister now knows there are no limits to what she can achieve.”
Mr May was briefly interrupted by a protester shouting “Stop Brexit!” but responded by saying: “I think the answer to that is – I think not.”
A short time earlier, at her final PMQs, Mrs May said she would continue as a constituency MP and was “looking forward to asking the questions” in future.
She said she was happy to hand over to a successor committed to delivering Brexit and creating “a bright future for this country”.
A number of MPs took the opportunity to praise her commitment to office and her achievements on issues like modern slavery, mental health and getting more women into politics.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn acknowledged Mrs May’s “respect for public service”, but criticised her record on the economy, homelessness and Brexit.
He asked whether she would consider joining him “in opposing the reckless plans of her successor”.
She, in reply, listed what she felt were her successes, including school improvements, more employment and greater home ownership.
“At its heart, politics isn’t about exchanges across these despatch boxes, nor about eloquent speeches or media headlines,” she said. “It is about the difference we make every day to the lives of people up and down this country.”
In a parting shot at Mr Corbyn, she added: “As a party leader who has accepted when her time was up, perhaps the time is now for him to do the same.”
Former London mayor Mr Johnson won a decisive victory over Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt in a ballot of Tory members – gaining a 66.4% total share of the vote.
Conversations are said to be “ongoing” between Mr Hunt and Mr Johnson about the foreign secretary’s next role.
Risky decision
The BBC’s Laura Kuenssberg says Mr Johnson’s choice of his top team is critical in his efforts to bring the warring factions of his party together.
Mr Johnson is resolute that his leadership rival should not stay on at the Foreign Office, but Mr Hunt is firm that he won’t accept anything less than his current role – or becoming home secretary, chancellor or deputy prime minister – and considers other moves a demotion.
Our political editor says it is a risky decision for the new PM – forcing Mr Hunt out would be a bad move in terms of uniting the party, but giving in to his refusal to budge is a challenge to his authority.
Another key decision Mr Johnson faces is who will take over at the Treasury as chancellor.
The incumbent, Philip Hammond, handed in his resignation to Mrs May, saying the new PM should be free to choose someone “fully aligned” with his views on Brexit.
Those said to be in the frame to replace him include current Home Secretary Sajid Javid, former Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab and Liz Truss, Mr Hammond’s deputy at the Treasury.
Meanwhile, Dominic Cummings, the former chief of the Vote Leave campaign, is expected to become a senior adviser to the new prime minister.
David Frost, a former ambassador and senior official at the Foreign Office, will be appointed as a key negotiator on Brexit.
After his victory, Mr Johnson said his priorities were to deliver Brexit, unite the country and defeat Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn.
Former Prime Minister David Cameron tweeted his congratulations to the new PM and wished him well for the “great privilege and responsibility” to come.
All the makings of a disaster?
Boris Johnson’s political inheritance has all the makings of a disaster.
He has no Commons majority. There is no mandate from the general public – remember this election has only been decided by Tory members.
There are policy problems everywhere in sight, whether that’s trying to solve the conundrums of Brexit with a reluctant EU and a divided party, or trying to address deep-seated problems at home.
And just as among his fans there is genuine excitement that he will, at last, be in Number 10, there is scepticism and disbelief from the opposition parties, and double-sided concerns in his own party.
Sweeping changes are expected in the wider cabinet, with a number of other ministers, including Justice Secretary David Gauke and Development Secretary Rory Stewart, having said they cannot serve under Mr Johnson due to his determination to leave the EU, with or without a deal, on 31 October.
Those tipped for promotion include Employment Minister Alok Sharma and Local Government Minister Rishi Sunak.
Priti Patel could return to the cabinet less than two years after resigning as international development secretary over a row over unauthorised meetings with Israeli officials.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Ms Patel said she did not want to “speculate” on a potential cabinet role, but added it was “important that we have a government that reflects modern Britain”.
And former Sports Minister Tracey Crouch, who quit last year in a dispute with the Treasury over fixed-odds betting terminals, could also be in line for a recall.
A source close to Mr Johnson said: “Boris will build a cabinet showcasing all the talents within the party that truly reflect modern Britain.”
Meanwhile, Tory donor Sir Mick Davis has resigned as chief executive of the Conservative Party, saying the new leader should be able to choose his own team.
In a letter, he urged fellow donors to get behind Boris Johnson, adding the new PM “can only be effective if a strong and unified party stands behind him”.
Mr Johnson will inherit a wafer-thin parliamentary majority and, like his predecessor, will continue to rely on the support of the Democratic Unionists of Northern Ireland to govern.
Labour, the Lib Dems and the SNP have said they will oppose him over Brexit, although they have stopped short of threatening an immediate vote of no confidence.
Shadow international trade secretary Barry Gardiner said “discussions are ongoing” between Labour and potential Tory rebels to find out who might support such a vote.
He told Radio 4’s Today programme it was “the nuclear option” which should be “used carefully”.
Priti Patel (left) and Liz Truss (right) are among those tipped for new jobs
Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage has said he is open to an electoral pact with Mr Johnson – if the new Tory leader is genuine about taking the UK out of the EU on 31 October.
Mr Farage said Mr Johnson would need to call an election if he wanted a no-deal Brexit, in order to “change the arithmetic” in the Commons.
But Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who is part of Mr Johnson’s transition team, said the incoming PM didn’t want to see an early election.
“There is no way that we are going to have any kind of electoral pact with the Brexit Party and Nigel Farage,” he told the Today programme.”
US President Donald Trump, speaking to a right-wing youth organisation in Washington DC, said Mr Johnson and Mr Farage would do “tremendous things” together.
Who is Dominic Cummings?
A political strategist and adviser known for his bullish style, Mr Cummings is a long-time Eurosceptic.
In 2004, he led the campaign against a North East regional assembly, and in 2007 went to work for Conservative MP Michael Gove, first in opposition and then while he served as education secretary.
In 2015, Mr Cummings was appointed campaign director of Vote Leave and became a key architect of its messages, including “take back control” and the controversial “£350m-a-week for the NHS” pledge.
Since the referendum, Mr Cummings has often been outspoken on the Brexit process, describing it in 2018 as having been “irretrievably botched” by the May government.
Laura Kuenssberg said some Brexiteers would be pleased with his appointment, seeing it as a strong sign of Mr Johnson’s commitment to a 31 October exit. However, she said there was a lot of very angry water under the bridge between him and Tory MPs on the ERG wing because he refused to allow many of them to be involved in Vote Leave.
Earlier this year, Mr Cummings was found in contempt of Parliament for refusing to give evidence to a committee of MPs investigating “fake news”. In return, he accused the committee of “spreading errors and lies”.
Dozens of Palestinians killed in overnight Israeli strikes in central and south Gaza as Red Sea tensions rise.
Here’s how things stand on Monday, January 15, 2024:
Latest updates and human impact
- Israeli attacks continue unabated overnight killing and wounding dozens of civilians in central and southern Gaza. At least 22 people were killed and a large number injured as a result of Israeli forces targeting al-Thalatheni Street in the central Gaza Strip.
- Yemen’s Houthi rebels fired an antiship cruise missile toward an American destroyer in the Red Sea, which was shot down by a US fighter jet, announced US Central Command (CENTCOM) on X.
- This was the first US-acknowledged Houthi attack since the US strikes on Yemen on Friday.
- Hamas released a 37-second video showing three Israeli captives held in Gaza on Sunday, saying they would reveal the fate of the captives on Monday and urging the Israeli government to stop the offensive.
- The Israeli military says it has shifted to a new phase of the war focused on the southern end of Gaza, where almost 2 million internally displaced Palestinians are running out of safe spaces to shelter.
- The Gaza Ministry of Health has said almost 24,000 people have been killed in the Israeli offensive. More than 60,000 people have been wounded in 100 days of war.
Diplomacy
- Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday that his country will pursue its war against Hamas until victory and will not be stopped by anyone, including the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
- The White House said on Sunday that “it’s the right time” for Israel to scale back its military offensive in the Gaza Strip.
- Egypt’s State Information Service (SIS) said in a statement on Sunday that one of the biggest obstacles to the timely delivery of sufficient aid to Gaza was Israeli inspection of the aid. The statement came after Israel blamed Cairo for the delay in aid delivery to Gaza during its defence at the ICJ.
- US Secretary of State Antony Blinken posted on X on Monday, calling for the release of the remaining captives held in Gaza on the 100th day since they were taken by Hamas. He did not mention the Palestinian casualties.
- Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong, who described herself as a “friend of Israel” to the press, will travel to Jordan, Israel, the occupied Palestinian Territories and the United Arab Emirates this week, her office said on Monday.
West Bank raids and violence
- Israeli forces arrested 25 students staging a sit-in in protest against high tuition fees at An-Najah University in Nablus. Al Jazeera’s Hamdah Salhut reported that the protesting students received a text message from Israeli forces telling them to “surrender now”.
- Israeli forces have reportedly raided the family home of Nael al-Barghouti, the longest-serving Palestinian prisoner, in the village of Kobar, in Ramallah, in the occupied West Bank.
- The Israeli army said on Friday that it killed three Palestinian men who infiltrated a West Bank settlement and fired upon soldiers.
- The Israeli military killed two Palestinians after accusing them of ramming their car through a checkpoint near Hebron.
- Local sources reported that Israeli forces bulldozed two Palestinian-owned houses during a Sunday midnight raid in the city of Qalqilya, Palestinian news agency Wafa reported.
- Armed Israeli settlers broke into the village of Burin, south of Nablus, and attacked Palestinian residents’ houses and properties after midnight on Sunday, Wafa reported.
- “Violent raids and arrests have become part of the fabric of daily life in the occupied West Bank,” Al Jazeera’s Mohammed Jamjoom, reporting from Ramallah in the occupied West Bank, said. At least 347 Palestinians have been killed and thousands have been arrested since October 7.
Flames and smoke billow during Israeli attacks against Gaza on October 9, 2023
Human Rights Watch terms Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant’s call for a ‘complete siege’ on Gaza a ‘war crime’.
The Hamas movement has threatened to kill an Israeli hostage every time Israel bombs a Palestinian home without warning as Israel mobilised some 300,000 reservists and imposed a total blockade of the Gaza Strip, denying the enclave’s millions of residents access to food, water and fuel.
The warning from Hamas came on Monday as the death toll from the armed group’s surprise weekend attack climbed to 900 in Israel and revenge attacks by Israeli forces on the besieged Gaza Strip killed more than 700 people and left some 3,700 others wounded.
Residential apartment blocks, hospitals, schools and a mosque have been among the sites attacked by Israeli fighter jets, artillery and drones, according to media reports and witnesses.
Hamas spokesperson Abu Ubaida issued the threat to kill Israelis from the dozens held captive by the armed group. He said an Israeli hostage would be killed for every Israeli bombing of a civilian house without warning.
Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen said more than 100 people were taken captive by Hamas during the deadly cross-border incursion over the weekend.
As Israeli forces conducted intense retaliatory attacks on Gaza on Monday, Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant drew international condemnation by announcing a total blockade of the densely populated and besieged enclave, which is home to 2.3 million people.
Gallant said Israel would impose a “complete siege” on Gaza. “No electricity, no food, no water, no gas – it’s all closed.”
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was “deeply distressed” by the siege announcement and warned that Gaza’s already dire humanitarian situation will now “only deteriorate exponentially”.
Guterres also said some 137,000 people were taking shelter with the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA) at schools across Gaza.
UNRWA said on Tuesday that almost 190,000 people have been displaced in Gaza amid the Israeli attacks and the figure is expected to grow further as the violence intensifies.
Nearly half a million people have also not received food rations this week in Gaza as UN food distribution centres have been forced to remain closed amid the Israeli onslaught, UNRWA said.
Human Rights Watch said Israel’s total blockade on the necessities of life for everyday people in Gaza was a war crime.
“Defense Minister Gallant’s statements are abhorrent,” Omar Shakir, Israel and Palestine director at Human Rights Watch, said in a statement.
“Depriving the population in an occupied territory of food and electricity is collective punishment, which is a war crime, as is using starvation as a weapon of war. The International Criminal Court should take note of this call to commit a war crime,” he said.
Abhorrent. This is a call to commit a war crime by @yoavgallant. The @IntlCrimCourt should take note.
Quote by @OmarSShakir ⤵️ https://t.co/kKVo6YtpI1 pic.twitter.com/neHQMwnXVn
— Human Rights Watch (@hrw) October 9, 2023
Shakir also condemned the threat by Hamas to kill hostages, warning that such action was also a war crime.
“All hostages should be safely released to their families,” he said.
Grotesque. These threatened acts would amount to flagrant war crimes by Hamas’ armed wing. The @IntlCrimCourt will be watching.
Quote from @OmarSShakir ⤵️ https://t.co/FuNtvHe0YG pic.twitter.com/6cnHODLWyZ
— Human Rights Watch (@hrw) October 9, 2023
On the diplomatic front, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan called on Hamas and Israel to immediately end violence and protect civilians, the Egyptian presidency said.
Erdogan urged Israel against “indiscriminately” attacking civilians and delivered measured criticism of Hamas, urging both sides to respect the “ethics” of war.
The United Kingdom, French, German, Italian and US governments issued a joint statement on Monday recognising the “legitimate aspirations” of the Palestinian people and supporting equal measures of justice and freedom for Israelis and Palestinians alike.
But the prospect that fighting could spread also alarmed the region and the world.
Lebanese armed group Hezbollah fired rockets into northern Israel in response to at least three of its members being killed in Israeli shelling of Lebanon.
Israel said one of its deputy commanders was also killed in an earlier cross-border raid from Lebanon.
US President Joe Biden holds a bilateral meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the sidelines of the 78th United Nations General Assembly in New York City, the US, September 20, 2023
Social media users, including journalists and observers, are calling out what they call a ‘double standard’.
After Saturday’s surprise attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Israel, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy took to the social media platform X to offer “condolences go out to everyone who lost relatives or close ones in the terrorist attack”.
He also stated, “Israel’s right to self-defence is unquestionable.”
Many world leaders, including US President Joe Biden and UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, shared similar sentiments.
The world is seeing appalling images.
Thousands of rockets raining down on Israeli cities. Hamas terrorists killing not only Israeli soldiers, but civilians on the streets and in their homes.
It’s unconscionable. Israel has a right to defend itself – full stop.
— President Biden (@POTUS) October 7, 2023
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated, “Israel has the right to defend itself – today and in the days to come. The European Union stands with Israel.”
Accusations of Western ‘double standards’
Some social media users have criticised these statements, saying they highlight a double standard.
The world is seeing appalling images.
Thousands of rockets raining down on Israeli cities. Hamas terrorists killing not only Israeli soldiers, but civilians on the streets and in their homes.
It’s unconscionable. Israel has a right to defend itself – full stop.
— President Biden (@POTUS) October 7, 2023
Ukraine’s right to defend itself is praised by most international leaders while Russia’s invasion is condemned, but commentators said the same cannot be said about Israel’s occupation of the West Bank and Gaza.
Aaron Bastani, a leftist British journalist, said on X that there’s a “clear double standard in endorsing terrorism against civilian targets in Ukraine … and condemning it by Palestinians”.
Many users said Western diplomats and media support the Ukrainians who defend their land, but label the Palestinians fighting against Israel as “terrorists”.
https://twitter.com/KhaledBeydoun/status/1710787817415082349?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1710787817415082349%7Ctwgr%5E6acf829869e993177f32aa38aa48c02f38cb7f61%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aljazeera.com%2Fnews%2F2023%2F10%2F9%2Fwestern-leaders-accused-of-hypocrisy-over-response-to-palestine-ukraine
An illustration of a woman’s face, in which one eye is closed beside a Palestinian flag, and one eye open beside a Ukrainian flag, has been regularly shared as a symbol of the West’s alleged double standards in how the two conflicts are viewed.
https://twitter.com/OnlinePalEng/status/1710994682883273172?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1710994682883273172%7Ctwgr%5E6acf829869e993177f32aa38aa48c02f38cb7f61%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aljazeera.com%2Fnews%2F2023%2F10%2F9%2Fwestern-leaders-accused-of-hypocrisy-over-response-to-palestine-ukraine
Clips also emerged on social media from a CNN interview with Mustafa Barghouti, the general secretary of the Palestinian National Initiative, in which he posed the rhetorical question, “Why does the United States support Ukraine in fighting occupation – while here they support the occupier, who continues to occupy us?”
The hypocrisy and double standards of western governments and media platforms dealing with situations in Ukraine-Russia and Palestine-Israel blow the mind. Absolute disgrace.
— Said Yacoubi (@AlyacoubiSaid) October 8, 2023
It is not the first time Western nations have been accused of double standards in their stance on the Ukraine war.
Earlier in the year, Amnesty International published a report highlighting the West’s “double standards” on global human rights.
Agnes Callamard, Amnesty’s secretary-general, told Al Jazeera at the time that the occupation of Palestinian territory was a “particularly important one”.
“Without making any comparison between Russia’s aggression and Israel … it is clear the Palestinian people are under a regime of oppression – a regime of occupation and a regime of apartheid,” Callamard told Al Jazeera.
Over the last three days, X users recirculated earlier statements calling out what they called Western hypocrisy, sharing video by the Irish lawmaker Richard Boyd Barrett from March 2022 in which he berated the Irish government’s double standards regarding Ukraine and Palestine:
“You’re happy to use the most strong and robust language to describe the crimes against humanity of [Russian President] Vladimir Putin, but you will not use the same strength of language when it comes to describing Israel’s treatment of the Palestinians.”
Barrett on Sunday again called out what he described as “shocking double standards of Western leaders supporting Ukraine resistance but condemning Palestinian[s].”
Meanwhile, others warned against comparing conflicts.
https://twitter.com/denfordauthor/status/1710993737738768607?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1710993737738768607%7Ctwgr%5E6acf829869e993177f32aa38aa48c02f38cb7f61%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.aljazeera.com%2Fnews%2F2023%2F10%2F9%2Fwestern-leaders-accused-of-hypocrisy-over-response-to-palestine-ukraine
And some cautioned that Hamas and the Palestinians should not be seen as one and the same.
Just to clarify:
Palestine did not mount an attack on Israel. An Iranian proxy militia did. Palestinians are by and large huddled in their homes praying that an Israeli airstrike won't kill them or theirs. Hamas is the culprit here. This isn't a decentralized grassroots thing.
— Romeo Kokriatski (@VagrantJourno) October 9, 2023
Ukrainian footballer Oleksandr Zinchenko, who plays for Arsenal, posted on Instagram, stating he “stands with Israel”.
Zinchenko has been a vocal supporter of his home country in its ongoing defence against Russia, and he participated in a Game4Ukraine charity match in London earlier this year to raise money for Ukraine.
After online backlash, with some questioning an alleged double standard in his support of Israel, the footballer removed the post and switched his social media account to private.
Several people claimed that Zinchenko’s football club, in not responding to his comments, was guilty of hypocrisy after they had distanced themselves from former player Mesut Ozil’s comments in 2019 over alleged human rights abuses against Uighur Muslims in China.
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