Richard Boyd Barrett Moves Bill Calling for Complete Boycott of Israel
Richard Boyd Barrett moved the Sanctions Against Israel Bill 2025, calling for a complete boycott of all economic relations with the State of Israel. He argued the bill is required by moral and legal obligations under the Genocide Convention and international law, alleging apartheid, ethnic cleansing and genocide.
He introduced the Sanctions Against Israel Bill 2025, which proposes a total economic boycott of the State of Israel in response to what he described as crimes of apartheid, ethnic cleansing, genocide and ongoing persecution of the Palestinian people.
He said the genocidal slaughter witnessed over the last two years in Gaza is the outworking of a long-standing policy dating back to 1948, and asserted that Israel is not a "normal state" but a system directed at the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.
He pointed to repeated statements by ministers, members of the military and members of the Israeli Knesset as evidence of genocidal intent, and referenced public declarations by Netanyahu as part of that record, while saying he did not have time in the speech to detail all the evidence.
He criticised the international community, including his own government and the EU, for providing political cover, arms, economic support and favoured trade status that he said has emboldened Israel to commit the crimes of the past two years.
Drawing a parallel with apartheid South Africa, he argued that Israel should be isolated from the international community and removed from normal diplomatic and economic relations, advocating a boycott modelled on measures used against apartheid-era South Africa.
Bill introduced
He introduced the Sanctions Against Israel Bill 2025, which proposes a total economic boycott of the State of Israel in response to what he described as crimes of apartheid, ethnic cleansing, genocide and ongoing persecution of the Palestinian people.
Allegations of genocide and apartheid
He said the genocidal slaughter witnessed over the last two years in Gaza is the outworking of a long-standing policy dating back to 1948, and asserted that Israel is not a "normal state" but a system directed at the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians.
Evidence cited in speech
He pointed to repeated statements by ministers, members of the military and members of the Israeli Knesset as evidence of genocidal intent, and referenced public declarations by Netanyahu as part of that record, while saying he did not have time in the speech to detail all the evidence.
Critique of international response
He criticised the international community, including his own government and the EU, for providing political cover, arms, economic support and favoured trade status that he said has emboldened Israel to commit the crimes of the past two years.
Comparison to apartheid South Africa and call for isolation
Drawing a parallel with apartheid South Africa, he argued that Israel should be isolated from the international community and removed from normal diplomatic and economic relations, advocating a boycott modelled on measures used against apartheid-era South Africa.
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Transcript
I move the Sanctions Against Israel Bill 2025. This bill, in line with our moral obligations but also our legal obligations under the Genocide Convention, International Conventions on Apartheid and international law, is calling for a complete boycott of all economic relations with the State of Israel for the crimes of apartheid, ethnic cleansing, genocide and the ongoing persecution and oppression of the Palestinian people. There is a narrative that Israel's only crimes are illegal settlements on the West Bank or that the genocidal slaughter that we have seen over the last two years in Gaza is simply the outworking of the extremism of Netanyahu and a few individual ministers. The truth of course is something very different. The truth is, Israel is not now or never has been a normal state. The State of Israel is a death machine directed at the Palestinians whose sole purpose is the ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people from their lands. This has been the case since 1948 and the genocidal slaughter that we have witnessed over the last two years is simply the outworking of that horrific reality. And it is the failure of the world to acknowledge and the international community, including our own government, the EU, other governments, to acknowledge the genocidal nature of the Israeli regime and the fact that it is based on apartheid and ethnic cleansing, the continued extension of political cover arms, economic support, favoured trade status that has actually emboldened Israel to commit the genocidal crimes of the last two years. I haven't got time to go into the evidence, but if you look at the statements of ministers, members of the military, of the Israeli Knesset, what you see is again and again and again clear statements of genocidal intent. Netanyahu has publicly declared his intention to erase Palestine from the map and that history goes back for the entire history of the State of Israel. Just like we did with apartheid South Africa, the time for treating Israel as a normal state has to end. They must be isolated from the international community, as we did with apartheid South Africa.