Keir Starmer calls for release of Israeli … sausages?

LONDON — U.K. Prime Minister Keir Starmer made an unfortunate party conference gaffe Tuesday as he called for the return of Israeli “sausages” held by Hamas since Oct. 7.

The British leader, addressing the party faithful in Liverpool, misspoke — and swiftly corrected himself — as he made an impassioned call for calm in the Middle East.

“I call again for restraint and de-escalation at the border between Lebanon and Israel,” Starmer said. “Again, for all parties to pull back from the brink.

“I call again for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, the return of the sausages — the hostages — and a recommitment to the two state solution, a recognized Palestinian state alongside a safe and secure Israel.”

The mix-up comes just before Starmer heads to the United Nations General Assembly in New York, where he said he will be pressing the case for a ceasefire.

Since coming to office, Starmer’s government has attracted the ire of Israel’s Benjamin Netanyahu by halting some British arms exports for use in Gaza and dropping U.K. objections to the International Criminal Court seeking an arrest warrant against the Israeli prime minister.

As opposition leader Starmer prioritized confronting antisemitism in his party, but has faced calls from some on the Labour left to take a harder line against Israel for its conduct in Gaza.