London Mayor Sadiq Khan has publicly defied his Labour Party leader Sir Keir Starmer by calling for an Israeli ceasefire, deepening the division within Labour over the war in Gaza.

The Mayor of London demanded that his party back an end to Israel’s military action in a shock move that was swiftly supported by Andy Burnham, the Labour Mayor of Manchester, and Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader.

His intervention was branded “irresponsible” by Jewish leaders as British cities braced for a third weekend of pro-Palestine protests amid warnings of heightened community tensions.

In a joint statement, the British Board of Deputies and the Jewish Leadership Council hit out at the growing clamour from Labour politicians for Israel to put down weapons.

“These calls show a worrying lack of understanding and are irresponsible coming from those in elected office here in the UK,” said the two leading Jewish groups. “You cannot believe that Israel has the right to defend itself against atrocities like this, and also call for a ceasefire, while Hamas says it will do the exact same thing again and continues to hold over 200 hostages.

“Diplomacy is important and we thank the Government for its support for Israel and efforts to stop the conflict spreading. Politicians who do not have a direct role in these diplomatic efforts should focus on threats to community cohesion here in the UK.”

The criticism came as Tom Tugendhat, the security minister, warned those calling for a truce that they were “siding with” Hamas.

He said: “We all want hostilities to end. We all want peace in Gaza. We all want peace in Israel. We also know that in the long term, any ceasefire will be one-sided. 

“Israel might lay down their weapons. Hamas won’t. Hamas will continue trying to murder Israeli civilians. Asking for a ceasefire is siding with the attacker, not with the victims.”

Mr Khan broke ranks with the Labour leadership with a statement on Friday in which he suggested Israel was breaking international law.

In a video message, he said: “I join the international community in calling for a ceasefire.

“It would stop the killing and would allow vital aid supplies to reach those who need it in Gaza. It would also allow the international community more time to prevent a protracted conflict in the region and further devastating loss of life.

“A widespread military escalation will only deepen the humanitarian disaster. It will increase human suffering on all sides.

“No nation, including Israel, has the right to break international law.”

Four hours later, Mr Sarwar issued his own video in which he said there must be “a ceasefire right now”. He also suggested that Israel was breaching international law with its actions in Gaza, which he described as “collective punishment”.

The crisis deepened even further for Sir Keir just two hours later when Mr Burnham became the third senior figure to back a truce.

In a statement, he said that he joined “the growing international calls for a ceasefire by all sides and for the hostages to be released unharmed”.

As the rebellion spread, Rushanara Ali, a shadow business minister, became the latest Labour frontbencher to publicly oppose Sir Keir’s stance.

“The international community must work together to urgently de-escalate this conflict and support an immediate internationally supported humanitarian ceasefire,” she said.

Sir Keir has, like Rishi Sunak, the Prime Minister, called for a "humanitarian pause" to allow aid to reach those in Gaza who need it, but stopped short of demanding a ceasefire.

However, more than one in five Labour MPs have signed a public motion urging Sir Keir to perform an about-turn, with at least half the party’s MPs said to privately back a truce.

Labour sources insisted that the leader was standing by his stance that Israel has a right to defend itself, but that it must do so in line with international law. 

A spokesman for Sir Keir added: “Of course, we understand why people want to call for a ceasefire. The Palestinian people are not Hamas, and they are suffering terribly.

“We also have to recognise Israel was subject to a vile terrorist attack. Israel has a right and a duty to defend itself, rescue the hostages and stop Hamas from being able to carry out that sort of terrorist attack ever again.

“Hamas are currently firing rockets into Israel and have built the infrastructure, including tunnels, from which to carry out further attacks, so that military operation is ongoing.

“That must be done within international law and aid must get in quickly, safely, and regularly to halt a humanitarian disaster.”

It comes amid warnings that Iranian agents are creating unrest in Britain by enflaming pro-Palestinian demonstrations.

Tehran is attempting to heighten tensions at protests through the use of operatives at rallies over Israel’s bombing of the Gaza Strip and via a campaign of online disinformation, the Times newspaper reported, citing warnings from counter-terrorism officers.

On Friday, senior Labour figures rallied to Sir Keir’s corner and accused those backing a ceasefire of gesture politics.

Lord Blunkett, a former home secretary, said that they were simply trying to “make themselves feel better” and that they should “grow up”.

“I’m talking about some of my colleagues who think it’s more important to make a gesture than it is to stay together and have a very clear view of all of this,” he told the BBC.

On the other hand, Scotland First Minister Hamza Yousaf also lamented the intense bombing in Gaza in his tweet posted on X platform.

https://twitter.com/HumzaYousaf/status/1717968233930637608