IAN Murray stopped short of calling for an “immediate” ceasefire in Gaza shortly after Scottish Labour members backed a motion demanding an end to the violence.
The shadow Scottish secretary told delegates at the party’s conference in Glasgow that fighting in the Middle East should “stop now” and be "sustainable" but did not go so far as to back the call from members.
It comes after members called on Murray and fellow MP Michael Shanks to back the SNP’s upcoming motion in the House of Commons calling for a ceasefire.
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But, earlier, Murray had told broadcasters that he wouldn’t confirm whether or not he would do so until he saw the details of the motion up for debate.
UK Labour leader Keir Starmer also refused to say how his MPs will be instructed to vote during the SNP’s opposition debate in the Commons next week.
Murray gave a short speech to the conference as thousands of pro-Palestinian protesters set off from George Square towards the SEC.
He told members: “We gather in Glasgow at a time of political instability in the world.
“As Anas spoke passionately about yesterday, the conference debated this morning and many are marching to highlight here and all over the world, today - the situation in Israel and Palestine is heartbreaking and intolerable.
“We all want the same thing. For the fighting to stop and to stop now and for all hostages to be released.
“And we need that ceasefire to sustain so there can be a proper process towards a permanent peace with a two-state solution and recognition for Palestine.”
Murray added that the “spiral of violence” is not new, and that it was a “huge failure” of the international community not to find a “peaceful resolution”.
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“The joint letter from Australia, New Zealand and Canada today echoes the calls from our own Shadow foreign secretary for this to stop and for there to be a political process for peace,” he added.
“A future UK Labour government will restore our tattered international reputation and work with the international community to reach an end to the violence.”
Earlier, members passed a motion calling for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire”.
Nairn McDonald (below), Scottish Labour North Ayrshire councillor, spoke in favour of the motion and said that party members “demand” Murray and Shanks vote for a ceasefire “when given an opportunity”.
Despite repeated calls from the SNP and group Westminster leader Stephen Flynn for Labour to get behind the party’s ceasefire motion, Starmer declined to do so when questioned by journalists in Munich on Saturday.
In a similar vein to Murray, he said the “motion hasn’t been put down” and said he would have to look at the “precise wording”.
Starmer and UK Labour have come under fierce criticism for their refusal to call for an immediate ceasefire.
First Minister Humza Yousaf said it was “astonishing” that Starmer still would not commit to an immediate ceasefire despite the high number of civilian casualties.
At least 28,663 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel began its military operation in the strip in October in response to the October 7 attacks, where Hamas militants killed some 1200 people and took another 250 hostage.
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