'Today is a better day than yesterday': Palestinian-British MP Layla Moran cautiously welcomes Gaza ceasefire deal
The Liberal Democrat MP welcomed the news that Hamas and Israel had agreed the first stages of a deal
Layla Moran, the Palestinian-British MP, has cautiously welcomed the Gaza ceasefire deal but warned that there is "a long way to go" until peace.
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Speaking on Tonight with Andrew Marr, the Liberal Democrat MP welcomed the news that Hamas and Israel had agreed the first stages of a deal aimed at ending the two-year war in Gaza.
The first phase will see the release of Palestinian prisoners and Israeli hostages taken on October 7, 2023, early next week.
Ms Moran, 41, told Andrew: "I don't want to put a dampener on this. This is a significant moment. It is different under Trump."
Laying praise on US President Donald Trump's ability to negotiate with Israeli Prime Minister, Ms Moran added: "He has a sway with Netanyahu that, frankly, Biden didn't have."
She then expressed optimism about the future in the war-ravaged strip, saying: "With any luck, [the ceasefire] will hold this time. We've got a long way to go, but yeah, today is a better day than yesterday."
Read More: Trump declares 'momentous breakthrough' in Middle East after Gaza deal agreed
Despite Britain not being involved in the negotiation, Moran told Andrew that she believes Britain has a big role to play in the search for peace.
She told LBC: "Britain has a really critical role to play in this and I don't think we should underplay our hands. People will know historically we had a strong role in the region.
"The British Mandate, but also the Balfour Declaration is held up by many Palestinians as being the start of this mess, not least because it did not protect, as it promised, the rights of Palestinians, and that was in 1917.
"So we have a long standing history in the region. And now is a moment where actually we could take a leadership role with some credibility, having recognised the state of Palestine just a few weeks ago in forging that path forward."
Despite her cautious optimism, Moran did criticise the deal for not involving the Palestinian Authority and negotiating with Hamas instead.
She said: "I'm firstly very concerned that, you know, Hamas have been the ones doing the negotiation. We have to be careful we don't conflate Hamas with the whole of the Palestinian population. And so often in this debate that has accidentally happened."
In April, Moran confirmed her Palestinian family had escaped Gaza after facing a 'treacherous journey' through the war-torn region.
Speaking to The News Agents, she confirmed her relatives had now fled to safety in Bahrain but had been left "traumatised" by their journey through Gaza City.
"They had to make that treacherous journey from Gaza City, through the checkpoints, Lord knows how, to Rafah. And there are nightmarish stories before they even began," she told The News Agents.
Throughout the two-year conflict, Ms Moran repeatedly called for the UK to cease arm sales to Israel because of their use in Gaza.
Ahead of the ratification of the deal by the Israeli Cabinet on Thursday, Mr Trump said the deal was a momentous breakthrough in the Middle East, something that people said was never going to be done".
He continued: "We ended the war in Gaza and, really, on a much bigger basis, created peace, and I think it's going to be a lasting peace.
"We secured the release of all of the remaining hostages, and they should be released on Monday or Tuesday, and getting them is a complicated process."
Mr Trump confirmed "we're going to go to Egypt, where we'll have an additional signing".
He explains that the peace agreement had already been signed, but it needs an "official signing".