Two British MPs have returned from a "harrowing" visit to the occupied West Bank where they described systemic human rights abuses, daily humiliation, and apartheid-like conditions that have turned the occupied Palestinian territory into "another Gaza".
Shockat Adam MP (Independent, Leicester South) and Andrew George MP (Liberal Democrat, St Ives) were part of a delegation coordinated by the International Centre of Justice for Palestinians (ICJP) following the deportation of two other British MPs from Tel Aviv just a week earlier.
Speaking at a press conference in Westminster, the MPs shared accounts of their week-long tour, which included visits to checkpoints in the north and south of the West Bank and the devastated Nur Shams refugee camp in Tulkarem.
The pair saw Israeli military raids in the West Bank and settler violence against Palestinians. Both MPs have been vocal in Parliament criticising the UK government's stance on the war on Gaza and urging for sanctions against Israel and a re-evaluation of ongoing arms sales to Israel.
However, they said that nothing could have prepared them for their first-hand experience of occupation.
"It was an erosion of hope. We witnessed relentless, humiliating conditions. Without international intervention, the West Bank could face a humanitarian catastrophe like Gaza," Adam said.
The MPs arrived in Israel on 13 April and remained in the occupied territories and surrounding areas until 18 April. Their entry was not straightforward. George was briefly detained at Ben Gurion Airport and held for an hour before being released following intervention by the British Embassy.
The MP for St Ives, who has previously accused Israel of "engaging in the cold-blooded slaughter" of hundreds of Palestinian children, said he feared another deportation after Yuan Yang and Abtissam Mohamed were refused entry, which Israel justified by saying that the MPs were "spreading hate".
"I have been increasingly drawn into the situation. We knew the scale before we went," George said. "My most recent remarks on what is going on were widely reported in the Israeli media, and I was concerned about the impact that may have.
"We were anxious about our colleagues being deported a few weeks before. We knew the score of the situation. We went with two objectives: to bear witness and to bring back what we saw."
Their itinerary took them to refugee camps, Palestinian villages, and the streets of Hebron, where the MPs witnessed what they described as systemic discrimination and violence. George recounted an incident where Israeli security forces raised their assault rifles at the MPs' vehicle as it approached a checkpoint.
The MPs also visited Masafer Yatta in the south Hebron hills, where they encountered Israeli settlers harassing Palestinian farmers, with settlers reportedly working in direct coordination with armed Israeli police.
Adam, who was denied entry to Al Aqsa Mosque for being Muslim, said: "We saw thousands of people being blocked at checkpoints. We saw weddings cancelled because the groom could not get through. These people live in a constant state of humiliation."
'Palestinians live in constant degradation'
While the MPs described the situation in Tel Aviv and Haifa as having a "Mediterranean calm", the West Bank was described as a "land of checkpoints and surveillance towers", marked by increasing settler aggression and military control.
"Group A lives in relative prosperity, with democratic rights. Group B is restricted in movement, in rights, and lives under daily threat and degradation," George said, in reference to Israelis and Palestinians.
Adam, who is leading a parliamentary push to have the UK formally recognise the State of Palestine, said that Israel was imposing a system of separation and subjugation on Palestinians, marked by violence and incitement.
In one chilling encounter, he described a conversation with an Israeli settler who declared that Palestinian children should be killed because, he said, "they would only grow up to kill Israelis".
The independent MP's proposed Palestinian Statehood Recognition Bill is currently under consideration in Parliament, backed by other independents such as Jeremy Corbyn.
Their visit comes amid a dramatic escalation in violence across Gaza and the West Bank.
The UK public is increasingly dissatisfied with the government's policy of continued support to Israel. Recent surveys suggested increasing frustration with the government’s perceived inaction, and grassroots campaigns across universities and local councils have intensified calls to reassess the UK-Israel relationship.
Tensions have emerged within the UK Jewish community itself after the Board of Deputies of British Jews recently suspended a senior member who co-signed a letter condemning Israeli military action in Gaza.
"We are a minute to midnight," Adam said. "This is not about taking sides, it is about taking the side of humanity. A future where Palestinians are free is the only path to long-term security for everyone in the region.
"Words alone are not enough. The UK must act now, before more lives are stolen, and before that final minute passes."