On Tuesday, it posted a mocked up picture of a commemorative blue plaque, which read: \u201cHistory will not forget complicity. Keir Starmer witnessed 73,000 Palestinians killed by Israeli forces, including 21,000 children, and kept supplying arms to Israel<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n Starmer\u2019s government placed some restrictions on arms sales to Israel in 2024, but stopped short of a complete suspension.<\/p>\n Save the Children\u2019s X post had been viewed more than 300,000 times by Wednesday afternoon. Gaza\u2019s health ministry said this week that more than 73,000 Palestinians have died since the beginning of the conflict on 7 October 2023, after Hamas attacked Israel.<\/p>\n The death toll included 1,000 people who had been killed since the start of a ceasefire in October last year, according to the ministry.<\/p>\n Officials from the Foreign Office are understood to have contacted Save the Children soon after the post went live to demand an explanation.<\/p>\n Tensions have apparently been heightened by the fact the government provides a significant proportion of the charity\u2019s funding. The Guardian understands it has received about \u00a3114m since the beginning of 2024.<\/p>\n Displaced children gather to receive meals distributed by a charity organisation in Khan Yunis, Gaza, as food shortages continue in the region. Photograph: Abed Rahim Khatib\/Anadolu\/Getty Images<\/p>\n A government source suggested on Wednesday that the post could increase anxiety among MPs already worried about their security as a result of Ann Widdecombe\u2019s death last week. Counter-terror police said the former Conservative MP, who later joined Reform UK, had been killed in a \u201ctargeted attack\u201d and are examining a possible political motive.<\/p>\n \u201cThis is deeply irresponsible rhetoric from Save the Children at a time when MPs are already fearful for their safety,\u201d the source said. \u201cThis to a prime minister who has recognised the state of Palestine<\/a> and put so much pressure on other countries to come with us supporting Gaza, making sure we ringfence cash for Palestinians. It\u2019s beyond the pale.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cDivisive hyperbole and misinformation like this are completely unfitting for a children\u2019s charity,\u201d a minister added. \u201cThis kind of language makes the concept of complicity utterly meaningless, which does no favours to the many children at risk of atrocities around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n Save the Children is part of a coalition of 17 humanitarian organisations who issued a joint statement on Wednesday calling on the incoming prime minister, Andy Burnham, to take \u201cdecisive action on Gaza and the occupied West Bank\u201d when he takes office next week.<\/p>\n Among its central demands is the complete suspension of arms sales to Israel and the imposition of trade sanctions until alleged breaches of international law are brought to an end.<\/p>\n The group, which includes ActionAid and Amnesty International, also wants the government to publish its response to the International Court of Justice\u2019s advisory opinion on aid provision in Gaza and set out a \u201cclear timetable for implementing its recommendations\u201d.<\/p>\n
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