UK Lawyers for Israel (UKLFI), a London-based pro-Israel legal advocacy group, is facing widespread condemnation after its chief executive suggested that reduced obesity in Gaza due to the ongoing war could potentially increase life expectancy. The remarks, made by UKLFI head Jonathan Turner, have been labelled “sickening” by the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC), especially as Gaza teeters on the brink of famine.
Turner’s comments came in a letter to the Co-operative Group, urging it to reject a motion calling for the suspension of Israeli product sales. In his letter, Turner contested a widely cited Lancet letter that projected 186,000 indirect deaths in Gaza, calling the estimate “totally false and misleading.” He further claimed the study failed to consider health factors like obesity that “may increase average life expectancy in Gaza.”
Outrage Amidst Worsening Humanitarian Crisis
Human rights groups, health experts, and pro-Palestinian organisations have denounced the comments as dehumanising and morally indefensible. Ben Jamal, Director of the PSC, said: “As children in Gaza face starvation and death, the suggestion by the head of UKLFI that they might benefit from weight loss is utterly sickening.”
Chris Doyle, Director of the Council for Arab-British Understanding (Caabu), also condemned the remarks, calling them “atrocious” and sarcastically adding that Israel appears to be putting Palestinians “on an enforced diet.”
The health ministry in Gaza estimates the death toll from Israel’s military campaign has exceeded 52,000 people since the war began following Hamas’ 7 October 2023 attack on southern Israel. A separate study published in The Lancet found that life expectancy in Gaza had dropped by nearly 35 years during the first year of the war.
Controversial History of UKLFI
This is not the first time UKLFI has sparked controversy. In 2023, the group successfully pressured Chelsea and Westminster Hospital to remove a display of artwork by Palestinian children, claiming the display made Jewish patients feel “harassed and victimised.” UKLFI has also threatened the UK government with legal action for halting arms export licences to Israel.
Turner defended his remarks by stating they were “accurate and objective,” arguing that decreased access to confectionery and cigarettes during wartime might have unintended health benefits.
