SIR KEIR STARMER was condemned today for claiming Israel has “the right” to cut off water and food supplies to two million people in Gaza — almost half of whom are children.

The Labour leader, who used to be a human rights lawyer, was criticised widely on social media and by campaign groups for his comment on Israel’s actions, which violate the Geneva conventions on human rights.

Israel’s government has blocked the entry of food, water, fuel and medicine into the sealed-off Gaza Strip.

The besieged coastal enclave’s only power plant has run out of fuel as civilians struggle to find shelter from Israeli bombardment, which has demolished entire neighbourhoods.

At least 2,200 people have died in Israel and Palestine since the current violence broke out on Sunday.

When asked about Israel’s blockade of resources, Sir Keir told LBC radio: “I think that Israel does have that right. It is an ongoing situation.

“Obviously everything should be done within international law, but I don’t want to step away from the core principles that Israel has a right to defend herself and Hamas bears responsibility for the terrorist acts.”

He also said that waving a Palestine flag on the streets could be an issue, “depending on the circumstances,” but told the radio station that Wembley Stadium should light its arch with the colours of the Israeli flag during Friday’s England-Australia football match.

Sir Keir’s remarks follow pressure on police forces from Home Secretary Suella Braverman to consider whether “the waving of a Palestine flag may not be legitimate” in “some circumstances.”

Palestine Solidarity Campaign director Ben Jamal called on the public to “fly the flag of Palestine” at a protest in London this weekend. 

The march will call for an end to the current violence and for Israel to be heldl to account for its “decades-long imposition of an illegal military occupation and system of apartheid.”

Mr Jamal described Sir Keir’s comments as “a matter of deep concern,” saying: “He is clearly ignorant of international law or indifferent to its application.

“Given his background as a lawyer, it is unlikely that the former is the case. 

“All political leaders who are truly committed to the application of international law and respect for human rights know that these principles must be applied consistently.

“You cannot, on the one hand, condemn Russia for its violations of international law via its illegal occupation of Ukraine, whilst giving the green light to another state overseeing a decades-long military occupation to commit further war crimes.

“Such comments give a message that violation of human rights doesn’t matter if the victims are Palestinians.”

Mr Jamal said that Ms Braverman’s call was “threatening to civil liberties and likely to further normalise a dehumanising of Palestinians that is currently widespread in political discourse.”

He said: “A police force enacting this instruction denies the right of Palestinians to fly a flag which is the symbol both of their nationhood and struggle for liberation from Israel’s system of oppression.

“It is also an assault on the basic right of British citizens to show solidarity for the Palestinian people’s legitimate desire to have their rights realised, including the fundamental right of self-determination.”

Stop the War Coalition convenor Lindsey German said: “We believe it is important to look at the roots of the terrible suffering of both Israelis and Palestinians we have seen in recent days.

“Those roots lie in the driving of Palestinians from their land in 1948, the occupation of the West Bank and Gaza in 1967, the repression which successive generations of Palestinians have suffered and the current growth in illegal settlements.

“Our government should not be supporting Israel as it bombs Gaza, cuts off water and electricity and targets the over two million Gazans trapped in an effective prison.”

Ms German condemned Ms Braverman’s “attempts to criminalise protest,” adding: “People have every right to carry Palestinian flags and demonstrate peacefully.

“These attempts to do so by the Home Secretary set a dangerous precedent and are a denial of our democratic rights.”

Saturday’s protest will assemble at 12pm outside Broadcasting House, the BBC headquarters, in Portland Place.