Why Israel is blaming Keir Starmer after Washington shooting that killed embassy staff

On Wednesday, two Israeli embassy staff were killed in Washington DC. The staff, Sarah and Yaron, were a couple.

They were planning to get engaged.

The suspected gunman, Elias Rodriguez, is a 30-year-old man from Chicago.

The attack has drawn condemnation from many people all over the world including UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

However, that hasn’t stopped Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu from accusing Starmer of siding with Hamas and “being on the wrong side of history.”

But what did Starmer say? What exactly did Netanyahu say and why?

Let’s take a closer look:

What did Starmer say?

Starmer has unequivocally condemned the killings.

As per The National, Starmer said the killings were “antisemitic”.

“I thoroughly condemn the antisemitic attack outside the Israeli embassy in Washington DC,” Starmer said.

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He also slammed anti-Semitism.

“Antisemitism is an evil we must stamp out wherever it appears.”

Starmer further offered condolences to the friends and family of the victims and the Jewish community on a whole.

“My thoughts are with their colleagues, family and loved ones, and as always, I stand in solidarity with the Jewish community,” Starmer added.

What did Netanyahu say?

As per BBC, Netanyahu claimed Starmer, France’s Emmanuel Macron and Canada’s Mark Carney had “effectively said they want Hamas to remain in power”.

He claimed they were in the corner of “mass murderers, rapists, baby killers and kidnappers”.

Some of Israel’s closest allies wanted Israel to “stand down and accept that Hamas’s army of mass murderers will survive”, Netanyahu said.

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“I say to President Macron, Prime Minister Carney and Prime Minister Starmer, when mass murderers, rapists, baby killers and kidnappers thank you, you’re on the wrong side of justice,” he added.

“You’re on the wrong side of humanity, and you’re on the wrong side of history.”

As per The Independent, the Israeli Prime Minister also claimed they were “emboldening Hamas to continue fighting forever”, by giving them “hope to establish a second Palestinian state from which Hamas will again seek to destroy the Jewish state”.

As per BBC, Netanyahu also slammed UN humanitarian chief Tom Fletcher.

“A few days ago, a top UN official said that 14,000 Palestinian babies would die in 48 hours. You see many international institutions are complicit in spreading this lie,” Netanyahu said.

“The press repeats it. The mob believed it. And a young couple is then brutally gunned down in Washington.”

What about other top Israeli officials?

As per The Independent, Amichai Chikli, Israel’s minister for the diaspora and combatting antisemitism, blamed Starmer and the other leaders for the killings.

“We must also hold to account the irresponsible leaders in the West who give backing to this hatred – whether through appeasement, double standards, or silence,” Chikli said.

“French president Emmanuel Macron, British prime minister Keir Starmer, and Canadian prime minister Mark Carney have all, in different ways, emboldened the forces of terror through their failure to draw moral red lines. This cowardice has a price – and that price is paid in Jewish blood,” Chikli wrote on X.

Israeli foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar toed a similar line.

“There is a direct line connecting antisemitic and anti-Israeli incitement to this murder,” Sa’ar was quoted as saying by The Independent. “This incitement is also done by leaders and officials of many countries and international organisations, especially from Europe.

“Their words are the modern blood libels. Blood libels about genocide, crimes against humanity and murdering babies paved the way exactly for such murders. This is what happens when leaders in the world surrender to the Palestinian terrorist propaganda and serve it.”

But why have Israel’s prime minister and other top officials gone on the attack against Starmer and other western leaders?

Why Israel is on the attack

Because Starmer, Macron and Carney earlier this week came out against Israel’s latest offensive in Gaza.

The leaders called Israel’s actions “disproportionate" and warned that the humanitarian situation was “intolerable”.

Starmer, backed up by Macron and Carney, had warned Netanyahu to halt his “egregious” actions in Gaza and said “concrete actions” would follow over the “intolerable” human suffering he is inflicting”

The leaders called on Israel to halt its military offensive and end restrictions on humanitarian aid – which is thought to be causing widespread famine in Gaza.

All three governments in a joint statement said they were committed to recognising a Palestinian state “as a contribution to achieving a two-state solution” to the war.

“We strongly oppose the expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The level of human suffering in Gaza is intolerable. Yesterday’s announcement that Israel will allow a basic quantity of food into Gaza is wholly inadequate.”

They added that the Israeli government’s denial of aid “is unacceptable and risks breaching international humanitarian law”.

“We condemn the abhorrent language used recently by members of the Israeli government, threatening that, in their despair at the destruction of Gaza, civilians will start to relocate.

“Permanent forced displacement is a breach of international humanitarian law”.

They warned they “will not stand by while the Netanyahu government pursues these egregious actions”.

“If Israel does not cease the renewed military offensive and lift its restrictions on humanitarian aid, we will take further concrete actions in response.”

Starmer, speaking to MPs earlier in the day in the House of Commons, called the situation in Gaza “horrific”.

“I’d like to say something about the horrific situation in Gaza, where the level of suffering innocent children being bombed again, is utterly intolerable.

“Over the weekend, we coordinated a response with our allies and I want to put on record today that we’re horrified by the escalation.

“From Israel, we repeat our demand for a cease fire as the only way to free the hostages. We repeat our opposition to settlements in the West Bank, and we repeat our demand to massively scale up humanitarian assistance into Gaza.”

As per BBC, UK armed forces minister Luke Pollard condemned the killings in Washington but rejected Netanyahu’s words against Starmer.

“We stand in support of Israel’s right to self-defence as long as they conduct that within international humanitarian law - a position we’ve had since those appalling attacks on 7 October,” Pollard said.

“We are also very clear we need to see aid get to the people who are genuinely suffering in Gaza.”

With inputs from agencies