LONDON, Apr 6: Two British MPs on a parliamentary delegation to Israel have been detained and refused entry by authorities in the country,
Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said, describing the Israeli action as “unacceptable, counterproductive and deeply concerning”.
Abtisam Mohamed and Yuan Yang were refused entry because they intended to spread “hateful rhetoric” against Israel, the Israeli population and immigration authority said in a statement reported by Israeli media.
“I have made clear to my counterparts in the Israeli government that this is no way to treat British Parliamentarians,” BBC quoted Lammy as saying.
“It is unacceptable, counterproductive, and deeply concerning that two British MPs on a parliamentary delegation to Israel have been detained and refused entry by the Israeli authorities,” he said, adding the foreign office had been in touch with both MPs to offer support.
Yang, MP for Earley and Woodley, and Mohamed, MP for Sheffield Central, flew to the country from Luton airport on Saturday with two aides, according to reports.
Interior Minister Moshe Arbel denied entry to all four individuals following an interrogation, the population authority said according to the Times of Israel.
According to the Israeli statement, the British passengers claimed to be part of an official delegation visiting Israel on behalf of the British Parliament.
However, the Population and Immigration Authority claimed this was untrue as no official in Israel had approved the arrival of the delegation, the statement said.
The UK Foreign Office, however, confirmed the group was part of the parliamentary delegation.
“The UK government’s focus remains to secure a return to the ceasefire and negotiations to stop the bloodshed, free the hostages and end the conflict in Gaza,” Lammy said in a statement.
Mohamed was born in Yemen. She is the first Arab woman to be elected as a British MP.
Yang is the first Chinese-born British citizen to be elected to the UK Parliament. (PTI )
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