Liverpool, 27 September 2026 – The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) and Labour Muslim Network (LMN) hosted a packed Labour Party Conference fringe event, bringing together parliamentarians, legal experts, medical professionals and Palestinians to discuss the steps the government must take to turn its commitments on Palestine into concrete action.
The event, entitled “Strengthening Our Approach: Labour’s Role in Turning Commitments into Action on Palestine” focused on the government’s approach to Palestine, its obligations under international law, and the reality facing Palestinians on the ground.
Speakers included:
- Tayab Ali – Director, ICJP
- Dr Mahim Qureshi – Vascular surgeon who worked in Al-Aqsa and Nasser hospitals in Gaza
- Ehab Omar – British Palestinian Families Network
- Afzal Khan MP – Vice-Chair, APPG on British Muslims
- Yasmin Qureshi MP
- Zubir Ahmed MP
ICJP Director Tayab Ali set out the legal obligations of the UK and the measures the government must take to ensure its policy towards Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory complies with international law. He highlighted the significance of the International Court of Justice’s July 2024 Advisory Opinion on Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territory and warned against separating the State of Israel from the illegal settlement enterprise when determining the UK’s responsibilities. He stressed that the UK must examine its own relationship with Israel in light of the obligations identified by the ICJ, including the obligation not to render aid or assistance in maintaining the unlawful situation created by Israel’s occupation.
Drawing on ICJP’s latest briefing on priority measures for Palestine, Tayab Ali also set out steps the government should take moving forward. These included protecting the ability of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) to operate and recognising its integral role in Palestinian life. He also called on the UK authorities to investigate allegations of war crimes involving British nationals who have served in the Israeli military since the beginning of the genocide, noting reports that more than 2,000 British nationals have served in the Israeli military during this time but that none have been investigated in the UK for potential involvement in war crimes.
Labour MPs at the event welcomed the government’s recently announced measures on Palestine and said they would continue pressing ministers to go further. Yasmin Qureshi MP highlighted the need for the ban on trade with settlements to extend across services as well as goods. Dr Zubir Ahmed MP, a transplant and vascular surgeon, condemned Israel’s banning of international medical and humanitarian organisations from Gaza. Azfal Khan praised Ed Miliband’s recent policy announcements while fully endorsing the joint ICJP-LMN Legal Briefing: Priority Measures for UK Policy on Palestine which calls on the UK to also work on six other priority themes.
The legal and political discussion was accompanied by harrowing first-hand testimony from Dr Mahim Qureshi, who described her experience working as a doctor in Gaza with Medical Aid for Palestinians at Al-Aqsa and Nasser hospitals. Dr Qureshi described witnessing between one and two mass-casualty incidents a day and treating unimaginable injuries without adequate medical equipment and supplies. She recounted seeing colleagues and team be obliterated and children as young as seven suffering gunshot wounds to the head, as well as the impact of quadcopter attacks used by Isreal on civilians. Her testimony offered the packed room a sobering account of the conditions in which Palestinian healthcare workers have been forced to operate due to Israel’s genocide in Gaza, and the scale of injuries inflicted on Palestinian civilians, including children.
Ehab Omar, of the British Palestinian Families Network, spoke about the experience of Palestinian families and the lasting physical and psychological impact of Israel’s assault on children in Gaza. He told the audience about his young niece returning to school in Palestine amid rubble and destruction and spoke about the thousands of Palestinian children living with amputations and other life-changing injuries. Omar stressed that alongside the visible physical wounds suffered by Palestinian children are profound psychological wounds. He reflected on the basic rights every child should enjoy – including the right to learn and play – and contrasted these with the reality facing children in Palestine.
The packed event came as Labour members, MPs and civil society organisations gathered in Liverpool for the party’s annual conference, amid renewed scrutiny of the government’s Palestine policy and calls for its stated commitments to be translated into measures capable of meeting the UK’s obligations under international law.
ENDS
Notes to Editors:
- The International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) is an independent organisation of lawyers, politicians and academics who support the rights of Palestinians and aim to protect their rights through the law.
- The event, “Strengthening Our Approach: Labour’s Role in Turning Commitments into Action on Palestine”, was jointly hosted by the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians and the Labour Muslim Network at Labour Party Conference in Liverpool on Sunday 27 September 2026.
- ICJP’s briefing on priority measures for Palestine sets out measures the UK government should take to comply with its obligations under international law.
- Please contact the ICJP press team at [email protected] for further information, photographs or interview requests.
