Tag Archives: international law

Accountability and international law

Israel’s increasingly brazen conduct in Lebanon and the wider region should come as no surprise to anyone who has been paying attention. A government that has faced few meaningful consequences for its conduct in Gaza was never likely to become more restrained elsewhere.  

From repeatedly violating US-brokered ceasefires to advancing the ‘doomsday’ E1 settlement project despite near-universal international opposition, recent Israeli actions all point to the same conclusion: its leaders have become convinced they can violate international law with impunity. The uncomfortable truth is that, to a large extent, the international community has taught them exactly that. 

For two and a half years, Israel’s systematic bombardment and starvation of Gaza’s civilian population has met with little more than handwringing from the UK and its allies.

International courts have repeatedly sounded the alarm. In January 2024, the International Court of Justice found that there was a plausible risk of genocide in Gaza and ordered Israel to undertake provisional measures to prevent genocide – none of which were implemented.

The ruling triggered binding obligations on third states under the Genocide Convention to take active steps to prevent genocide and ensure accountability for those responsible. 

Yet many western governments responded with little more than expressions of concern. Instead of meaningful pressure, there were statements. Instead of consequences, there were warnings. Instead of enforcement, there was handwringing. As the Lib Dems declared in September 2025 genocide has clearly been taking place.  Sadly it continues.

The same pattern was evident when the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defence Yoav Minister Gallant, alongside a Hamas commander, for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Rather than welcoming the arrest warrants, as when Vladamir Putin was indicted, the UK’s then Conservative government refused to say whether it would arrest Netanyahu if he visited the UK. Subsequent reports indicate that then Foreign Secretary David Cameron even threatened to defund the court after learning of its intention to seek the indictments.

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International law is broken

This week’s reports of Iranian security forces machine-gunning down scores of unarmed protestors, apparently including children and teenagers must surely strike a chill in the heart of any liberal.  How can this be allowed to happen in the 21st Century? Meanwhile, the US military action in Venezuela has attracted widespread condemnation as a breach of International Law, despite Maduro’s Government being widely recognised as authoritarian and morally illegitimate.

In moral terms, the Iranian regime is little different from a bunch of criminal thugs with guns, killing whomever they please. But in International Law, they are the legitimate Government (largely by virtue of, they are the ones who managed to seize control in the country), and therefore international law sides with the thugs, not with the people being killed.  Just as on the other side of the World in Venezuela, International law condemns the removal of a dictator who has driven a quarter of his own people into exile as refugees!

Why is this? Well, Article 2(4) of the UN Charter enshrines a near-absolute prohibition on the use of force, subject only to self-defence or Security Council authorisation, which is next to impossible to achieve under the veto system. It’s written that way because it’s designed to stop tanks crossing borders: to prevent wars between nations, reflecting the concerns of the 1940s, rather than to protect people from trigger-happy governments. The unfortunate upshot is that when a state massacres its own citizens, international law permits other states to do little more than investigate or condemn. And mere condemnation is impotence if the law does not permit any action that might actually be effective in protecting the people being massacred.

Worse still, the Security Council veto system is no accident. It was deliberately designed to give a handful of powerful states permanent control over when international law is enforced, thereby protecting the interests of those states.

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7 January 2026 – today’s press releases

  • Lib Dems blast Reform Mayoral Launch for “talking down” London
  • Govt must state if US military seizure of oil tanker was legal under international law
  • ScotRail disruption payments top £3 million
  • Greene responds to watchdog warning on waiting times
  • Welsh Lib Dems raise ongoing red tape hitting Welsh lamb
  • Greene: Pause business rates revaluation

Lib Dems blast Reform Mayoral Launch for “talking down” London

Responding to a Reform UK press conference, announcing Laila Cunningham as their mayoral candidate, Lib Dem London Spokesperson Luke Taylor MP said:

From its history to its culture to its people, London is the greatest city in the world but all Reform seem to do is talk it down.

Cunningham and Farage care more about sowing division than they do about solving the actual problems that Londoners face.

The Liberal Democrats will stand up for the millions of Londoners who love this city and its values and ensure London is a better place for everyone.

Govt must state if US military seizure of oil tanker was legal under international law

Responding to the US’s seizure of a Russian-flagged oil tanker in the Atlantic, Calum Miller MP, Liberal Democrat Foreign Affairs Spokesperson, said:

The Russian shadow fleet is busting oil sanctions for Russia and allies like Iran. It helps Putin sustain his brutal war on Ukraine. We support measures that stop the illicit flow of oil that powers sanctioned regimes.

But this is another example where Donald Trump’s illegal action in Venezuela has undermined steps to uphold international law.

The use of US air bases in the UK to launch this operation places a particular obligation on the Government to show that we are committed to acting lawfully. So the Government needs to state whether this military intervention is legal and who is now responsible for the vessel.

ScotRail disruption payments top £3 million

Scottish Liberal Democrat transport spokesperson Jamie Greene has today revealed that since the nationalisation of the ScotRail franchise the service has paid out more than £3m in payments to passengers whose trains have been cancelled or delayed.

Passengers whose trains are delayed by more than half an hour can make delay repay claims.

Figures for delay repay payments are typically published by ScotRail with a six-month lag, however figures acquired by Scottish Liberal Democrats reveal that between April 2022, when the service returned to public ownership, and the end of October 2025:

  • £3,089,106.54 was paid to passengers for late trains.
  • There have been 262,747 claims for delay repay in that time, with 178,446 of those being approved and paid out.
  • This means that the average pay-out for delay repay in that time has been £17.32.

Scottish Liberal Democrat transport spokesperson Jamie Greene MSP said:

This is an eye-watering, multi-million-pound bill for delayed trains.

The SNP have been directly responsible for the trains for three and a half years, but these figures point to a serious level of disruption that will be frustrating for commuters, holidaymakers and taxpayers.

Since this figure only covers those who have applied for a refund, there may be many more people who have been similarly inconvenienced but who simply haven’t claimed.

With people across the country struggling to make ends meet, these payments need to be brought under control. That’s also how we create a more efficient service that will help encourage people out of private cars.

Passengers and commuters deserve better. Wherever you are, by backing the Scottish Liberal Democrats on your peach regional ballot next May, you can vote for a public transport that works for all communities, ages and for the planet. We would achieve that with new options for two/three-day-a-week season tickets and by working with councils to explore new lines, especially in areas where public transport links are poor.

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5 January 2026 – today’s press releases

  • Lib Dems demand release of Venezuela legal advice as Starmer again refuses to say whether Trump breached international law
  • Cole-Hamilton: Scotland deserves better than old divisions
  • Cole-Hamilton responds to World Cup bank holiday
  • Lib Dems raise alarm after Conservative Shadow Minister hints they would cut free bus passes for over-60s in Wales

Lib Dems demand release of Venezuela legal advice as Starmer again refuses to say whether Trump breached international law

The Lib Dems are calling on the Government to publish any legal advice it has received on breaches of international law by the United States in its strikes on Venezuela and kidnapping of Nicolas …

Posted in News, Press releases, Scotland and Wales | Also tagged , , , and | 1 Comment
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