Shadow Mental Health Minister Luciana Berger spoke movingly at a reception for Israel poverty charity Manna Meir Panim, which was held in Parliament on Monday evening.

Ms Berger, the MP for Liverpool Wavertree, who is Jewish, initially called on government officials to do all they could to restore peace in the wake of rising tensions in Israel, saying: “Political leaders must do all they can to restore calm”.

She went onto call for an end to dependence on food banks across the globe – highlighting the importance of charity as a Jewish value and the need to support the “sick, poor and weak”.

Ms Berger – who recalled visits to food banks in the UK, Israel and Africa – told more than 100 guests that 36 per cent of Israeli children live below the poverty line.

She added: “Manna Meir Panim does a fantastic job in raising awareness.

“This organisation deserves our support for those who desperately need it.”

The event was also attended by Tory MP Nadhim Zahawi.

Mr Zahawi, who described Israel as “a remarkable country”, said that despite its achievements in technology, some citizens needed more support, adding: “Some people fall between the cracks”.

At the event, organiser Mark Sabah announced that Rabbi Joseph Dweck, the senior rabbi of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews’ Congregation, is Manna’s new patron.

Mr Sabah, a board member, went onto highlight the importance of the charity’s work in the current conflict – claiming that fewer Israelis were attending food centres near Jerusalem for fear of being stabbed.

Board of Deputies president Jonathan Arkush praised the charity’s work at the event.

He said that tourists visiting Israel rarely travelled to areas like Kiryat Malakhi in the south. “The real face of poverty confronts us at places like this,” he said.