Ash Sarkar confronted Emily Thornberry over Labour’s stance on Gaza as Israeli forces mount a full-scale assault on Rafah.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said he is “deeply concerned” about the potential humanitarian cost of an offensive around the city in southern Gaza which has become a refuge for Palestinians forced out of other areas in the war-ravaged territory.
The UK urged both sides in the Israel-Hamas conflict to focus on negotiations to end the bloodshed.
Israeli forces seized control of the Gazan side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt, an important route for aid to reach the territory.
The United Nations Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs said the Israeli authorities had denied it access to the crossing.
Speaking on PoliticsLive, Novara’s Ash Sarkar said the moves are a result of “Israel being emboldened” as she ripped into Labour’s stance on the issue.
It was announced earlier today that the US has paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns about a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
The shipment was supposed to consist of 1,800 2,000-pound (900-kilogram) bombs and 1,700 500-pound (225-kilogram) bombs, according to the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the sensitive matter, with the focus of US concern being the larger explosives and how they could be used in a dense urban setting.
More than 1 million civilians are sheltering in Rafah after evacuating other parts of Gaza amid Israel’s war on Hamas, which came after the militant group’s deadly attack on Israel on October 7.
The US has historically provided enormous amounts of military aid for Israel. That has only accelerated in the aftermath of Hamas’ October 7 attack that killed some 1,200 in Israel and led to about 250 being taken captive by militants.
Related: Channel crossings continue as 2,000 arrive in wake of Rwanda laws