Members of the GroenLinks-PvdA alliance have voted by a large majority to support a total weapons embargo against Israel at their joint conference on Saturday.

Some 80% of the 6,000 delegates backed the party leadership, which had called for a full ban on weapons exports to Israel during a stormy debate in parliament earlier this week.

On Thursday, MP Kati Piri submitted a motion calling on the government to halt the delivery of components for the Israeli air defence system Iron Dome. The system, she said, made Israel feel secure enough to attack other countries, resulting in even more victims.

“Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has begun a new reckless adventure with his attack on Iran,” she told the NRC in an interview on Friday. “The lives of innocent people throughout the region have been put at risk.”

Her motion caused an outcry in parliament and was ultimately only supported by 35 of the 150 MPs, including the Socialists, Denk, and the pro-animal PvdD. It also prompted a backlash from several high-profile party members, including former leaders Job Cohen and Lodewijk Asscher.

But alliance leader Frans Timmermans, appealing for party unity at the start of Saturday’s congress, urged delegates to “respect differences of opinion” and “keep hold of one another”.

“I have seen how much pain this has caused,” he said. “That is why it is so important that we talk about these things as a party. What links us all is stopping the killing and ensuring there are no more innocent victims.”