Andy Slaughter, newly appointed solicitor general in the UK government, faces scrutiny over meetings with Hamas officials documented during visits to the Middle East in 2010.
Slaughter traveled to Jerusalem in November 2010 alongside then-Labour MP Jeremy Corbyn on a fact-finding delegation organized by Friends of Al-Aqsa and Middle East Monitor. A since-deleted report from the latter organization indicated the group met representatives of both Fatah and Hamas. Photographs from the trip show Slaughter and Corbyn with Mohammed Totah, Ahmed Attoun and Khaled Abu-Arafeh, individuals with documented Hamas connections, according to The Telegraph.
Records also document that Slaughter met Hamas Justice Minister Faraj al-Ghoul and Deputy Foreign Minister Ahmed Yousef during a separate March 2010 visit to Gaza. Yousef served as a senior aide to Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh between 2006 and 2014, while al-Ghoul was a prominent Hamas figure later killed by Israel.
Following the Gaza trip, Slaughter wrote in The Guardian that negotiations should be conducted "with those who have a mandate and a willingness to achieve progress... that includes Hamas."
Shadow Justice Secretary Nick Timothy criticized the appointment as an "absolute disgrace," Stating it "beggars belief" That Labour had given someone demonstrating "sympathy for Hamas" Authority over the government's legal department.
The Attorney General's Office defended the appointment, saying such decisions are carefully reviewed and that Slaughter will act impartially under the rule of law. A spokesman noted Slaughter has consistently condemned Hamas's actions and supports a two-state solution with peaceful coexistence between Israel and a Palestinian state.
Hamas was designated a terrorist organization by the United Kingdom in 2021.