Sir Keir Starmer has been accused by an Israeli minister of “emboldening the forces of terror” that led to the fatal shooting of two Israeli embassy staffers in Washington DC.

Israeli ministers have directed blame towards western political leaders, suggesting their recent condemnation of Israel’s aid blockade and resumed offensive in Gaza was partly to blame.

“We must also hold to account the irresponsible leaders in the West who give backing to this hatred – whether through appeasement, double standards, or silence,” said Amichai Chikli, Israel’s minister for the diaspora and combatting antisemitism.

“French president Emmanuel Macron, British prime minister Keir Starmer, and Canadian prime minister Mark Carney have all, in different ways, emboldened the forces of terror through their failure to draw moral red lines. This cowardice has a price – and that price is paid in Jewish blood,” he added in a post on X.