Jeremy Corbyn To Host Gaza Tribunal Probing UK Complicity In Israeli Atrocities.

Unofficial inquiry to hear from survivors, legal experts, and whistleblowers amid growing calls for accountability over Britain’s role in Gaza wa

Former Labour leader and independent MP Jeremy Corbyn has announced the launch of an independent “Gaza Tribunal” to investigate the UK government’s complicity in what leading human rights bodies, genocide scholars, and international legal authorities have increasingly identified as potential genocide in Gaza.

The tribunal, organised by Corbyn’s Peace and Justice Project, will be held on4–5 September 2025 at Church House in Westminster. It will feature testimony from survivors of Israeli bombardment, legal scholars, journalists, whistleblowers, medical professionals, and UN officials. The event will also be livestreamed globally, in an effort to bypass traditional media blackouts and political obfuscation.

The inquiry is a direct response to the UK government’s refusal to investigate its role in Israel’s nine-month military campaign on Gaza, which has killed over 100,000 Palestinians, displaced over 90% of the population, and obliterated vast swathes of civilian infrastructure, according to UN estimates and humanitarian agencies.

“Just like Iraq, government ministers are doing everything they can to hide the truth. Just like Iraq, they will not succeed,” Corbyn said in a statement announcing the tribunal.
“We will uncover the full scale of British complicity in genocide – and we will bring about justice for the people of Palestine.”

Parliament Blocks Public Inquiry Into UK Role:

In June, Corbyn introduced the Gaza (Independent Public Inquiry) Bill to the UK House of Commons, demanding a full and transparent investigation into Britain’s support for Israeli operations, including arms exports, intelligence sharing, and the use of Royal Air Force (RAF) assets.

The bill garnered support from more than 50 MPs, including all nine Scottish National Party (SNP) members and several Labour backbenchers. Over 22 human rights organisations also backed the effort, including War on Want, Campaign Against Arms Trade, and the Palestine Solidarity Campaign.

However, on 4 July, during its second reading, the Labour government blocked the legislation.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer, a vocal supporter of Israel’s actions, has previously rejected claims that Israel is committing genocide, dismissing legal assessments made by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Criminal Court (ICC).

Tribunal Structure And Legal Basis:

Though the Gaza Tribunal will not carry legal powers to compel testimony or enforce conclusions, it seeks to emulate historic people’s tribunals such as the Russell Tribunal on Vietnam (1966) and the Kuala Lumpur War Crimes Commission on Iraq (2011), both of which played key roles in shaping public discourse and building future legal cases.

The tribunal will be structured around four core questions:

1. What has happened in Gaza?
   Eyewitnesses and survivors will testify to the scale of human devastation, including mass killings, starvation, displacement, and the targeting of civilian infrastructure.
2. What are Britain’s legal responsibilities?
   International law experts will outline the UK’s obligations under the Genocide Convention, the Arms Trade Treaty, and domestic export controls, which prohibit arms transfers where there is a risk of war crimes.
3. What has Britain’s role been in the genocide?
   The tribunal will assess UK arms exports, intelligence-sharing arrangements, RAF surveillance flights over Gaza, and the use of British military bases in supporting Israeli operations.
4. Has Britain fulfilled its legal obligations?
   Drawing from the above, legal analysts will determine whether Britain breached its duty to prevent genocide and contributed to international crimes through material support.

Mounting Evidence Of UK Complicity:

Despite the government’s denials, extensive evidence has emerged suggesting the UK played a significant enabling role in Israel’s Gaza campaign:

• Arms Exports: Between October 2023 and April 2025, the UK licensed over £400 million worth of military components to Israel, including for the F-35 fighter jet program, which has been used in bombing raids on densely populated areas in Palestine.
• Surveillance Flights: The Royal Air Force has flown surveillance missions over Gaza as part of “Operation Shader,” purportedly to gather intelligence on Hamas. However, sources in the defence sector suggest this data has been shared with Israeli forces, who have used it to target hospitals, schools, and aid convoys.
• Political and Diplomatic Cover: Starmer’s government has repeatedly blocked or abstained on UN ceasefire resolutions and refused to condemn Israeli attacks on humanitarian infrastructure, even after the deaths of British doctors and aid workers in Gaza.

“The UK is not just a bystander. It has actively aided and abetted war crimes in Gaza,” said Rafeef Ziadah, spokesperson for the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel (PACBI).

“This tribunal will finally bring these facts into the public domain.”

A Challenge To The Labour Government:

Corbyn’s tribunal also marks a direct political confrontation with the Labour Party under Keir Starmer, who has presided over a dramatic shift in party policy on Palestine since replacing Corbyn as leader in 2020.

Starmer has repeatedly opposed ceasefire motions, suspended MPs who voiced support for Palestine, and courted pro-Israel lobby groups. In contrast, Corbyn has maintained that Labour’s current leadership is “complicit in genocide denial.”

“By blocking a parliamentary inquiry, the government has shown it is unwilling to face scrutiny,” said Kate Hudson, chair of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament.
“That makes this people’s tribunal even more necessary.”

Historical Echoes: From Vietnam To Iraq To Gaza.

The Gaza Tribunal draws on the tradition of civil society-led accountability efforts where state mechanisms have failed. The Russell Tribunal on Vietnam in 1966, for example, was similarly dismissed by Western governments as politically biased, but its findings contributed to international pressure on the US to withdraw from the war.

Similarly, the Chilcot Inquiry into the Iraq War, another war of aggression with UK complicity, took over a decade to materialise. Many see the Gaza Tribunal as a preemptive act of historical documentation and justice-building, before evidence is lost or silenced.

What Comes Next?

While the Gaza Tribunal will not yield immediate legal consequences, organisers believe it will:

• Create a public record for future ICC or ICJ proceedings
• Inform international civil society and legal professionals
• Exert pressure on the UK government for eventual accountability
• Inspire other national-level inquiries, including in Europe and the US

Corbyn has said the proceedings will be fully open to the public, and free registration is available at www.thegazatribunal.uk.

“We don’t need their permission to uncover the truth,” Corbyn wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
“The people of Gaza deserve justice. And the British people deserve to know what is being done in their name.”

Who Is Supporting the Gaza Tribunal?

• MPs: 50+ MPs across SNP, Labour, and independent benches
• NGOs: War on Want, CAAT, PSC, Amnesty UK (supportive of investigation, not directly involved)
• Legal Experts: International jurists affiliated with UN bodies and the ICC (names to be announced)
• Whistleblowers: Reportedly include former MoD officials and aid workers