Andy Burnham, the politician widely expected to become the United Kingdom's next Prime Minister, has issued a public apology for the Labour Party's initial response to Israel's military campaign in Gaza, acknowledging the party "didn't get it right" and promising a more assertive approach toward the Israeli government under his leadership.
In comments to the Guardian, Burnham said: "I know many people feel that at the start of Israel's military action in Gaza my party didn't get it right and I am sorry about that. The response has too often not been good enough. We need to do better." He outlined a range of measures he intends to pursue, including further sanctions on Israeli officials and entities involved in violence, and potential restrictions on the trade of goods from illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank. He also criticised the pace of the current government's response, saying the UK "was too slow to call for a ceasefire." While Burnham said he was "appalled" by the destruction in Gaza and cited "increasing evidence that war crimes appear to have been committed," he declined to use the word genocide, arguing it was for international courts rather than politicians to make that determination. The Green Party's deputy leader Mothin Ali pushed back, accusing Burnham of deflecting a legal obligation to halt arms sales.
Burnham's statement addresses a significant political wound for Labour. Two-thirds of Labour voters who have since switched to the Green Party cited the party's position on Gaza as a factor, according to a recent poll by Opinium for the Palestinian Solidarity Campaign. The apology is likely to unsettle current Labour leader Keir Starmer, who drew widespread criticism in October 2023 when he said Israel had "the right" to withhold power and water from Gaza — remarks he took nearly ten days to clarify. Burnham was careful to balance his shift in position, strongly condemning Hamas's 7 October 2023 attacks and reaffirming his commitment to tackling antisemitism.
The reckoning over Western policy toward Israel is not limited to the UK. In the United States, former Chicago mayor and ambassador Rahm Emanuel — who is exploring a presidential run in 2028 — delivered a pointed speech at Tel Aviv University calling the US-Israel alliance "at a crossroads." Emanuel criticised the Netanyahu government for relying exclusively on military force while neglecting diplomatic and economic tools, and proposed what he called a "23-state solution": full Arab League normalisation with Israel tied to genuine Palestinian sovereignty, with Arab nations acting as guarantors of a Palestinian authority rather than observers from the sidelines.
Taken together, the interventions by Burnham and Emanuel reflect a broader shift in the political calculus of Western leaders, particularly on the centre-left, as public opinion — especially among younger voters — grows increasingly critical of Israel's conduct in Gaza. Both men framed their positions not as abandoning Israel, but as arguing that the current trajectory is strategically and morally unsustainable.