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UK Labour MPs 'astounded' to be detained and deported from Israel

Two British parliamentarians have said they are "astounded" to have been briefly detained and deported by Israel.

On Saturday afternoon, Labour MPs Abtisam Mohamed and Yuan Yang arrived in Israel as part of a parliamentary delegation but were refused entry on the grounds that they intended to "spread hate speech" against the country and "document the security forces", according to Israel's Population and Immigration Authority.

But British Foreign Secretary David Lammy slammed the Israeli government on Saturday night, saying the move was "unacceptable, counterproductive and deeply concerning".

"I have made clear to my counterparts in the Israeli government that this is no way to treat British parliamentarians, and we have been in contact with both MPs tonight to offer our support."

In an interview with Laura Kuenssberg, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch said she supported Israel's decision,  arguing that "every country should be allowed to police its own borders".

Read more: UK Labour MPs 'astounded' to be detained and deported from Israel

Abtisam Mohamed MP (Screengrab/ X)