Palestinians urge UK to act on colonial-era war crimes after recognition of state

Thirteen Palestinian families are calling for the UK to apologise over war crimes they said were subjected to during the British Mandate in historical Palestine, which lasted from 1917 until 1948, after Britain recognised the State of Palestine earlier this month.

The 400-page legal petition to the Foreign Office is seeking an official apology and reparations from the UK.

The petition documents three decades of alleged violence, repression, and forced expulsion, before Britain withdrew and Israel was established in 1948 in an event known as The Nakba, which saw hundreds of thousands of Palestinians ethnically cleansed from their land.

Alleged abuses reportedly include murder, torture, expulsion and collective punishment, which the petition says amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity.

The UK Foreign Office did not confirm to the BBC whether ministers were aware of the legal petition, stating it did not "routinely comment on" such matters.

The BBC however also reported that Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy is to ask officials to look into the petition.

A similar petition, filed in 2022, also asked for a formal acknowledgement and apology for abuses during Britain's colonial rule of Palestine. The UK Ministry of Defence stated that it was aware of the allegations and would thoroughly review the evidence provided.

The UK formally recognised a Palestinian state on 21 September, in a bid to revive "hope of peace for the Palestinians and Israelis", defying decades of Western foreign policy, as well as angering Israel.

Britain captured Palestine from the Ottoman Empire during World War 1, after promising to support the creation of a Jewish homeland there in the 1917 Balfour Declaration. Two years earlier it had promised to support the creation of an Arab state that would include Palestine.

Almost 5,000 Palestinian Arabs were killed during the Great Revolt in 1936, which lasted for three years, during which Palestinians launched a campaign against the British Mandate and Jewish settlement.

Britain's withdrawal in 1948 led to the mass expulsion of Palestinians by Zionist forces and the establishment of Israel. At least 750,000 Palestinians were forcibly expelled from their homes as Zionist forces captured 78 percent of historic.

The remaining 22 percent was divided between what is now the Gaza Strip, which Egypt took control of and the West Bank, which was annexed by Jordan. These were later occupied by Israel in 1967.

Israeli settlers continue to expand illegal settlements in the occupied West Bank, with threats to push for rapid annexation following Britain and other Western nations' recognition of the State of Palestine.

The genocidal Gaza war also rages on, killing over 65,500 Palestinians since October 2023, according to the Gaza health ministry.