UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak Sacks Minister, Paul Bristow Who Called For Gaza Ceasefire

A minister in United Kingdom under Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak’s government has been sacked after he called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza.

Tory MP Paul Bristow left his job as a Parliamentary Private Secretary (PPS) at the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology after urging Mr Sunak to back a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.

It came just hours after the former PPS to Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary Michelle Donelan wrote to the prime minister telling him a ceasefire would save lives.

According to UK Express, he said Palestinian civilians were facing “collective punishment” as a result of Israel’s siege and campaign of airstrikes in the wake of Hamas’s attack.

Downing Street said the Peterborough MP was asked to leave his job as a PPS for breaking rank. Bristow has been approached for comment.

Mr Bristow’s letter, dated Thursday (October 26), appears to have been deleted from his website, but remains on Facebook.
The MP wrote he felt “deeply grieved by the heart-breaking and devastating humanitarian crisis” unfolding in Gaza, having spoken with constituents and meeting with the Peterborough Joint Mosques Council.

He said he welcomed Mr Sunak’s call for what he termed “specific pauses” in the fighting to allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza, which is home to more than two million people.

But Mr Bristow added: “A permanent ceasefire would save lives and allow for a continued column of humanitarian aid (to) reach the people who need it the most.

“The brutal Hamas attacks against innocent civilians are unforgivable. Hostages need to be released. It is challenging to understand how the present strategy of bombing Gaza will lead to the release of hostages.”
Mr Bristow added “ordinary people” were “not Hamas”, with the group’s attacks on Israelcondemned as “brutal” and “unforgivable”.

He accompanied an image of the letter on social media with the comment Palestinians should not “suffer collective punishment for the crimes of Hamas” – action which could be deemed a war crime.