Hezbollah has exposed the West’s fatal cowardice

Israel cannot win this war against Iran alone, but we are denying Jerusalem help in its hour of need

The massacre this weekend of 12 children playing football in a Hezbollah missile attack is a heartbreaking reminder of why we should be doing everything possible to support Israel. The Iranian-made rocket that exploded in Majdal Shams was one of over 150,000 missiles supplied by Tehran to its terrorist army in Lebanon. Since the October 7 attacks by Hamas, Hezbollah has been firing missiles and drones into northern Israel almost daily.
Lebanon and Gaza are the two most active arenas of a seven-front war, armed and directed from Tehran and intended to strangle Israel. I was in Tel Aviv a few days ago when a drone launched by Iran’s Houthi proxies in Yemen exploded in the city, killing one and injuring others. I was in Jerusalem in April when hundreds of missiles and drones were fired at that city and other locations in Israel by Iran itself.
The RAF, with counterparts from the US, France and Arab countries, helped defend against that bombardment. Although Israel has strong armed forces, it is not all-powerful and relies heavily on assistance from allies. But right now its most important backer, the US, is withholding supplies of some vital munitions, a matter Benjamin Netanyahu spoke of in his address to the US Congress last week. He echoed Churchill’s appeal to America in the Second World War: “Give us the tools faster and we will finish the job faster.” 
The UK, too, supplies Israel with critical equipment in a trade from which British defence benefits substantially. But now, in its hour of need, Labour is considering an arms embargo.
Such moves are strategically illiterate and damaging to our national interests. As we plan to undermine Israel’s defences, Iran, backed by Russia and China, is sending advanced weaponry to Jerusalem’s enemies. Like Ukraine, Israel is on the front line of an increasingly hot war against the West perpetuated by our enemies. Tehran has sent thousands of drones to Russia for its onslaught against Ukraine. 
As Iranian terrorist contagion has infected Lebanon, Syria, Iraq, Libya and Yemen, it threatens to contaminate Egypt, too. Before this war, Cairo was already in dire economic straits. Now it has been pushed further towards the brink by Tehran’s proxies attacking cargo vessels in the Red Sea, which have diverted significant volumes of shipping away from the Suez Canal, denying Egypt vital revenue.
Even though instability in Egypt would have catastrophic consequences, timorous US and UK military action against the Houthis has had almost no effect. For its part, Israel has shown the way with a devastating air strike against Hudaydah Port in Yemen in response to the Tel Aviv drone attack.
This is not a matter of retaliation but of deterrence. A strong Israel benefits us all. Jordan is also in Iran’s sights, with Tehran actively seeking to destabilise the country using its militias in Syria and Iraq. Jerusalem plays a key role in bolstering Jordan against Iran, so any weakening of Israel will harm our wider interests in the region.
Assuming that the strategic importance of backing Israel is still understood in Labour’s Whitehall, it seems to be trumped by anti-Israel propaganda that paints the Jewish state as illegitimate. This false narrative is also being stoked by institutions such as the International Criminal Court, whose prosecutor wants to issue arrest warrants against Netanyahu and Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant. The Tory government recognised the gross injustice of this and applied to make formal objections to the court. Labour has now, shamefully, withdrawn them.
The political warfare campaign against Israel includes lies such as that it is an apartheid state. In reality, Israel is a multi-ethnic, multi-religious democracy, where minorities are far better treated than anywhere else in the Middle East. Arabs are represented everywhere, including in the Supreme Court and the Knesset, and many have joined the fight against Hamas.
The other day, I was briefed by a Druze colonel in Gaza, a member of the same community that was torn apart by Hezbollah’s attack on Majdal Shams. He is responsible for co-ordinating humanitarian aid to the population in Gaza. Denial of aid is the central element of the ICC’s case against Netanyahu and Gallant. Yet I and the group of former generals from Nato countries who accompanied me had never before seen such monumental efforts to get aid into a combat zone by an army fighting an active war.
The Government must see through the lies that are impairing its decision-making and fully support Israel in this fight. Like it or not, it is a fight for the West as well.