UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Tuesday (local time) made an embarrassing gaffe when he said “return of sausages” instead of “return of hostages” while calling for the release of Israeli civilians by Palestinian terrorist group Hamas in Gaza.
“I call again for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the return of the sausages – the hostages – and a recommitment to the two-state solution: recognised Palestinian state alongside a safe and secure Israel,” Starmer said at the Labour Party’s annual conference in Liverpool as he corrected himself. A video of Starmer making the slip of the tongue went viral on social media.
During his speech, Starmer touched upon the escalation of tensions between Israel and Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah and called for restraint, The Times of Israel reported.
“I call again for restraint and de-escalation at the border between Lebanon and Israel. I call again for all parties to step back from the brink. I call again for all parties to step back from the brink,” he said.
While laying out a vision for the future of British children, the UK Prime Minister was interrupted by a protester.
“Every child, every person, deserves to be respected for the contribution they make…,” Starmer said before the protester from the audience shouted, “Does that include the children of Gaza?”
To this, Starmer responded cheekily, saying, “This guy has obviously got a pass from the 2019 conference. While he’s been protesting, we’ve been changing the party and that’s why we’ve got a Labour government.”
In July, Starmer became the Prime Minister as his Labour Party secured a landslide victory after 14 years of Conservative rule. In 2020, he took over from Jeremy Corbyn, who was repeatedly accused of antisemitism.
Starmer’s wife, Victoria Alexander, a Jewish, has earned accolades from his colleagues for working to remove antisemitism within the party, according to The Times of Israel.
The Starmer government has repeatedly urged a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, speeding up humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza and the release of hostages by Hamas during its assault on October 7, 2023.
Some 1,200 civilians were killed and 250 were taken hostages when Hamas launched an unprecedented attack on Israel. The Jewish nation responded with a brutal offensive in Gaza, which has claimed over 41,000 lives so far, according to the Hamas-run Palestinian health ministry in Gaza.