Rishi Sunak condemns pro-Palestine demonstration at Keir Starmer’s home

Handout photo issued by Youth Demand of their protest outside the London home of Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer. Issue date: Tuesday April 9, 2024.
Protesters outside Sir Keir Starmer's house Credit: PA Wire/PA Images

Rishi Sunak has condemned pro-Palestine protesters who staged a demonstration outside Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer’s London home.

The group, known as Youth Demand, describe themselves as a “new youth resistance campaign fighting for an end to genocide”.

The demonstrators hung a banner outside Sir Keir’s house that read: “Starmer stop the killing” surrounded by red hand prints.

In a video Youth Demand called for a two-way arms embargo on Israel, saying that weapons manufactured in the UK were being “used to cause genocide”.

Protesters then laid rows of children’s shoes in front of the Labour leader’s door, a tactic that has been utilised at a number of pro-Palestine protests to signify children killed in Gaza.

Protest outside the London home of Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer Credit: PA

Rishi Sunak, who’s own home in North Yorkshire was the target of climate protesters in 2023, said such incidents would not be tolerated.

In a post to X the Prime Minister said: “I don’t care what your politics are, no MP should be harassed at their own home.

“We cannot and will not tolerate this.”

Home Secretary James Cleverly also posted to X, saying: “This is unacceptable. There is no excuse for harassing and intimidating politicians and their families in their homes.”

The Government has been under increasing pressure to publish legal advice it has received in relation to whether Israel is violating international humanitarian law in Gaza, after three British aid workers were killed by Israeli air strikes in the region.

Sir Keir has called for the Government to publish the advice, with the party’s shadow foreign secretary David Lammy stating arms sales should be halted if there has been a “serious breach” of international law.

On Monday Youth Demand sprayed Labour’s headquarters with red paint, and later claimed that 11 people had been arrested in relation to that incident.

The Metropolitan Police has been approached for comment.

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