Blackburn councillors quit Labour over Israel-Gaza war:

Sir Keir Starmer has called for "humanitarian pauses" but not for a ceasefire

Two more councillors have resigned from Labour in protest over the party's stance on the Israel-Gaza war.

Blackburn councillors Saj Ali and Mustafa Desai quit on Thursday and will continue as independents.

Mr Desai criticised Labour's leadership as "unwilling to call out atrocities" against civilians in Gaza.

Along with the prime minister, Sir Keir Starmer has called for "humanitarian pauses" to transport aid but stopped short of calling for a ceasefire.

More than 1,400 people were killed in Israel by the armed group Hamas on 7 October.

Since then, about 7,000 people have been killed - 40% of whom are children - in Gaza, according to Palestinian officials.

Two men look at a building destroyed by an Israeli air attack in Gaza

About 20 councillors have since stepped down from Labour in protest over Sir Keir's position.

In a LBC interview on 11 October - when asked if it was appropriate for Israel to cut off water and power to Gaza - he said: "I think Israel does have that right."

He has since claimed he meant to say that Israel had a right to defend itself.

Mr Ali and Mr Desai decided to quit Labour after a virtual meeting held by the party's deputy leader Angela Rayner to discuss the war, according to the Local Democracy Reporting Service.

Leadership criticisms

In a letter, Mr Desai wrote that the conflict "continues to claim many, many innocent civilian lives".

"Yes I condemn the attack by Hamas.

"However I also condemn the disproportionate and indiscriminate attacks on innocent Palestinian people and civilian infrastructure, the displacement of millions and the many breaches of international law - all lives are valuable."

He said previous letters to Sir Keir Starmer "seeking appropriate responses" had led to "nothing forthcoming".

He described his latest requests as "straightforward", adding that he thought Sir Keir should call for an immediate ceasefire and "condemn the atrocities being committed by Israel".

"I cannot continue being a member of a party whose leadership [is] unwilling to callout atrocities against a civilian population," he said.

Mr Ali said: "I had to follow my conscience. I was not happy with the response from the leadership.

"I cannot stand by and watch innocent lives being massacred."

Blackburn Labour MP Kate Hollern, who recently called on the government to work for a ceasefire, said she was "very sad" about the pair's departure from the party, adding "I fully respect their decisions at this difficult time".

Local councillor Altaf "Tiger" Patel also stepped down from the Conservatives recently over the government's stance on the conflict.