British Foreign Office Minister Resigns Over Government's Gaza Policy
Sayeeda Warsi took to Twitter early this morning to announce her resignation from her position as a senior British Foreign Office minister for faith and communities, citing the government's "morally indefensible" approach to the ongoing crisis in Gaza. When she was appointed in 2010, Warsi became the first Muslim to serve in a British Cabinet.
According to the BBC, Warsi is the first minister in four years to resign in opposition to policy. From Warsi's resignation letter:
My view has been that our policy in relation to the Middle East Peace Process generally but more recently our approach and language during the current crisis in Gaza is morally indefensible, is not in Britain's national interest and will have a long term detrimental impact on our reputation internationally and domestically.
Particularly as the Minister with responsibility for the United Nations, The International Criminal Court and Human Rights I believe our approach in relation to the current conflict is neither consistent with our values, specifically our commitment to the rule of law and our long history of support for International Justice. In many ways the absence of the experience and expertise of colleagues like Ken Clarke and Dominic Grieve has over the last few weeks become very apparent.
Warsi told the Huffington Post UK today, "Our decision not to recognize Palestinian statehood at the U.N. in November 2012 placed us on the wrong side of history and is something I deeply regret not speaking out against at the time."
Prime Minister David Cameron expressed his disappointment in Warsi's decision to resign in his own letter, but reaffirmed, "Our policy has always been consistently clear: we support a negotiated two state solution as the only way to resolve this conflict once and for all and to allow Israelis and Palestinians to live safely in peace."
