And Barrow's letter to the former PM's and FM's is the first from his desk, but the UDP has issued two statements on their position regarding Israel and Palestine. In the most recent letter, they called for a two state solution, but also referred to the ongoing atrocities as a "sustained war between Israel and Hamas."
Today - before the younger Barrow sent out his 7 page tome - we asked his father, former PM Dean Barrow, for his views. He's made it clear that he and his son share differing opinions on the matter, but he commended the party for calling for a two state solution.
However, former PM Barrow explained that he does not view what is happening in Palestine as a "war with Hamas," and that after more than 40 days, Israel's actions can no longer be justified as self-defense.
Dean Barrow, Former Prime Minister
"Look, I condemn what Hamas did, which is the most recent action that resulted in what's taking place. All I said, all Said Musa said, in the first joint statement that we put out is that Hamas' incursion into Israel and the killing of civilians and the taking civilians prisoner, completely wrong but that, as the Secretary General of the UN said, while it is wrong, it is not incomprehensible, you've got to see it in the context of the fact that Gaza has been an occupied territory for years and years and there are all sorts of injustices being perpetrated against Palestinians both in Gaza, especially in Gaza, but also in the West Bank and so while it cannot excuse what Hamas did, it goes someway towards explaining what Hamas did. Israel had and has a right of self defense and so some of the immediate responses of Israel were perhaps also understandable and maybe even justifiable, but we've long past that point, what is happening cannot be clothed in this garb of self defense, that is crazy. There is, I see NEAB talking about, oh well, what about the situation with Russia and Ukraine and why didn't the government suspend diplomatic relations with Russia, well, I think the government has answered that, but the two things both are horrible but there's no comparison. With Russia and Ukraine, that is a war indeed, that is, if there's not a kind of equality of arms between these two sovereign countries, there's the fact that even though Russia is far bigger and far better armed, NATO and the US are supporting Ukraine in material and military ways. So Ukraine is able to defend itself in an effective way, it is still a terrible tragedy because people are dying, but that's not comparable to what is happening in Gaza, Gaza is helpless, and again in the same way we are not to conflate or confuse Jews with the State of Israel, we're not to confuse Palestinians with Hamas."
