'An insult to Britain': Labour MPs Abtisam Mohamed and Yuan Yang denied entry to Israel during West Bank visit

Abtisam Mohamed and Yuan Yang were travelling as part of a parliamentary delegation when they were stopped at Ben Gurion Airport and refused entry. The MPs have since returned to the UK.

In a joint statement posted on social media, the MPs said: “We’re astounded at the unprecedented step taken by the Israeli authorities to refuse British MPs entry on our trip to visit the occupied West Bank. It is vital that parliamentarians are able to witness first-hand the situation in the occupied Palestinian territory.”

The pair said their planned visit included humanitarian aid projects and meetings with local communities in the West Bank, facilitated by UK-based charities with over a decade of experience organising such delegations.

“We are two, out of scores of MPs, who have spoken out in Parliament in recent months on the Israel-Palestine conflict and the importance of complying with international humanitarian law,” their statement continued. “Parliamentarians should feel free to speak truthfully in the House of Commons without fear of being targeted.”

The MPs also thanked the British embassy in Tel Aviv, the British Consulate in Jerusalem, the Middle East minister, and the Foreign Secretary for their “tireless support”.

Treasury Chief Secretary Darren Jones told Sky News the government was aware of the incident and confirmed that Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron had raised the matter with his Israeli counterpart. “Clearly, it’s unacceptable for British members of Parliament on a parliamentary delegation to be detained in that way,” he said.

The chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, Dame Emily Thornberry, strongly criticised the move, calling it “an insult to Britain” and “badly advised.”

“These are two young women who are potential leaders,” she told the BBC. “They are highly respected parliamentarians, and Israel is badly advised to try to alienate them, to humiliate them, and to treat them in this way... I think that they will rue the day that they did this to British parliamentarians.”

She added, “If Israel has something to hide, then that would be a terrible thing, but frankly, they should be open to parliamentarians going to see what is actually happening on the ground.”

However, Opposition and Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch defended Israel’s decision, telling Sky News: “I think that every country should be able to control its borders, and that’s what Israel is doing, as far as I understand.”

“Those Labour MPs, according to the Israelis, were coming in to do something that they were not allowed to do, and so I respect that decision,” she added. When asked whether the situation seemed unusual, she replied, “I’m not surprised.”

Israel has not issued a formal public explanation for the MPs’ refusal of entry.