York MP Rachael Maskell has called on the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary to end the violence in Gaza.

The Labour MP for York Central was speaking at a city centre rally organised by Palestinian supporters.

She told attenders Israel’s actions were “genocide” and the “slaughter of women and children”.

And she called on her party leader, the Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and the Foreign Secretary David Lammy, to “do their part” in ending the war in Gaza.

About 100 people attended the rally in St Helen’s Square before marching behind flags and banners and chanting pro-Palestinian chants on a circular route through the city centre.

It is the latest of a long series of rallies and marches held by Palestinian supporters in York since Israeli armed forces entered Gaza in late 2022, after Hamas killed and kidnapped people in Israel.

Israel strongly disputes that its actions in Gaza amount to genocide and says that it takes all steps it can to prevent civilian deaths.