British government has ‘ignored’ the suffering of Palestinians, says Iraqi president

Iraqi President Abdul Latif Rashid has accused the UK government of “ignoring” the suffering of the Palestinian people.

In a rare interview with the Western media, Rashid told Sky News that “the Palestinian problem has become an international problem.”

Speaking to Alex Crawford at the Presidential Palace in Baghdad, the leader added: “Recently, the suffering of the Palestinian people and the attacks on Gaza, especially on civilians and children, have been beyond anything which human rights can accept, and I think it is the duty of the international community to put an end to the suffering of the Palestinian people.”

The remarks came as Israel continued its relentless campaign of airstrikes and action on the ground in the Gaza Strip. Some 30,000 Palestinians, many of them women and children, have been killed, according to Palestinian officials.

The UK government has not called for an immediate ceasefire, nor has it halted the transfer of arms to Israel amid concerns that they might be used to commit “war crimes” against Palestinians.

Meanwhile, London has witnessed some of Europe’s largest pro-Palestine protests with regular marches on Saturdays drawing hundreds of thousands of people.

Rashid added: “The demonstrations on the streets of London and other places in the United Kingdom show that, even in the Parliament, the argument is on ending the suffering of the Palestinian people.

“But the prime minister and the British government itself (have) ignored all these requests — and they still continue in not recognizing the state of the Palestinian people.”

The president said he was “extremely disappointed” with the conduct of the British and American governments which had both neglected their duties.