John Mason says he is 'disappointed' to have had the whip withdrawn by the SNP but reiterated that Israel 'have the ability to kill many more Palestinians than they have'.

The Glasgow Shettleston MSP had the whip removed on Saturday after comments he made on social media about the ongoing war in the occupied Gaza Strip.

Dismissing concerns that the country may be in breach of the United Nations genocide convention, Mr Mason wrote: "If Israel wanted to commit genocide, they would have killed ten times as many."

The comments were immediately condemned, including by many in his own party, with former Westminster leader Ian Blackford calling him an "embarrassment" and "not fit to represent anyone".

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The SNP announced on Saturday that the whip had been withdrawn pending a disciplinary procedure, describing his comments as 'utterly abhorrent'.

The MSP has now responded to his suspension, as he stood by his words on social media.

Mr Mason said in a statement: "My primary desire in relation to Israel and Gaza is that there should be peace talks, negotiations, and eventually peace. I would like to see Scotland (and the UK) playing its part as a peace-maker (as Norway has done previously), encouraging all sides to talk and negotiate.

"Too many lives have already been lost in Israel, Gaza, and beyond and, as I said when I spoke in Parliament, many people feel that Israel has moved from a position of self-defence to seeking revenge.

"However, I personally do not believe that Israel has tried to commit, has committed, or is committing genocide.

"They certainly have the ability to kill many more Palestinians than they have done.

"That is not to say that the loss of life already is not too many. And we should remember that it is Iran and Hamas who have stated that they want Israel wiped off the map… that sounds more like an intention of genocide than anything Israel has said or done.

"As far as my suspension by the SNP is concerned, I am obviously disappointed about that. However, that will work its way through the party process in the usual way."

Following his suspension, the Scottish Greens said his party still had questions to answer after Angus Robertson controversially met with Israel's deputy ambassador.

Scottish Green Co-leader Patrick Harvie MSP said: "The SNP was right to remove the whip from John Mason. His comments were utterly abhorrent. They minimised the scale of suffering and displayed a total ignorance towards the atrocities that are being inflicted every day on the people of Gaza.

“This cannot be the end of the issue. What has happened to John Mason should not distract from the fact that a senior Scottish Government minister met with a senior representative from a state that has been inflicting genocide on the people of Palestine for the last 300 days to pose for photos and discuss their 'unique commonalities'.

"Both the Secretary of State for External Affairs and the First Minister have very serious questions to answer about when the decision was made, who made it and why. We hope this will be resolved long before the end of recess, but if not we will be demanding an urgent statement while we consider next steps.

"All governments must act against genocide, whether it is the UK government that is arming and supporting Israeli forces or the Scottish Government which has continued to pour public money into the arms companies who are enabling and profiting from the destruction.”