Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s government has an opinion from its legal advisers that says Israel is violating international law in its military operation in the Gaza Strip, but is refusing to publicly confirm it, a top Conservative official was recorded as saying.

The chair of the House of Commons foreign affairs committee, Alicia Kearns, said, according to a recording of what she said at an event released by the media, that she is convinced the Sunak government has concluded that Israel is not complying with international humanitarian law, and added that “transparency is essential at this stage.”

The Foreign Office, when asked about it, said that there is indeed such a legal opinion, which is being evaluated by the government, however, hastening to add that its content is “confidential”, according to a report by the British news agency PA Media, which relayed the German Agency.

Israel has come under increasing pressure over its treatment of Palestinians in its war against Hamas since the Palestinian Islamist movement’s attack on its soil on October 7.

In an extract from the recording, Tory Kearns MP can be heard saying: “The Foreign Office has received a formal legal opinion that Israel is in breach of international humanitarian law, but the government has not announced this. He doesn’t say that, he hasn’t stopped arms exports.”

Under British law, licenses cannot be granted to export weapons if there is a risk that they will be used for serious violations of international law.

Yesterday Ms Kearns confirmed the authenticity of the recording and repeated what she said on it. “Transparency on this point is capital, if nothing else to uphold the rules-based international order,” he added.

The British Foreign Secretary David Cameron has said that Israel, as the “occupying power” in the Palestinian territories, has responsibilities, such as in particular to distribute humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, declaring that if it fails to do so it will face “consequences”.

When he appeared before Ms Kearns’ commission in January, the UK foreign minister was repeatedly asked what legal advice he had received. He avoided giving a specific answer.

At the same time, a group of 50 members of the British Parliament signed an open letter calling for British funding of the United Nations agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) to be restored “without delay”.

Britain was among the countries that suspended funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East after Israel alleged that members of the agency were involved in the October 7 attack.