International Fund for
Israeli-Palestinian Peace
(North Tyneside) (Lab)
4. What diplomatic steps she is taking to ensure that the UK has
a role in the international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace.
(906605)
(Caerphilly) (Lab)
6. What diplomatic steps she is taking to ensure that the UK has
a role in the international fund for Israeli-Palestinian peace.
(906607)
The Minister for Asia and the Middle East ()
We welcome the US’s Middle East Partnership for Peace Act and the
proposals for increased international funding for
Israeli-Palestinian peace. We share the objective of advancing
economic, social and political connections, and peaceful
co-existence between Israelis and Palestinians. We stand ready to
co-ordinate and collaborate further.
The recent attacks in Israel and the violence
in Jerusalem and Gaza are a reminder of how urgent it is to
support projects that bring Israelis and Palestinians together.
Can the Minister now confirm to the House when the UK will join
the board of the international fund for Israeli-Palestinian
peace?
I am grateful to the hon. Lady for her question. UK officials
remain in close contact with the US Government about how our
existing peace-building projects and funding can better support
the goals of the Act. We stand ready to co-ordinate and
collaborate further, including regarding the advisory board, as
additional information about their plans and priorities become
available.
Recent violence in the west bank and in Israel itself
underlines the need for an international fund for Israeli and
Palestinian peace, but such a fund will not just happen. It
actually requires positive support from Governments around the
world, including and especially this Government, yet the truth is
that our Government are paying only lip service to it. When will
the Government remember the success of the International Fund for
Ireland and learn the lessons of that success?
As I say, what we all want to see is a safe and
secure Israel and we want to
have a two-state solution that enables us to do that and also
delivers Palestinian self-determination. We are working with the
US Government on these projects and the funding that can support
the Act, and as and when we have more information about the plans
and the priorities, we will co-ordinate with them.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Foreign Secretary.
(Tottenham) (Lab)
The last few weeks have seen spiralling tension and violence
in Israel and Palestine,
with a dozen Israelis killed in a spate of horrific terrorist
attacks and more than 20 Palestinians killed in response,
including the senseless killing of a teenager and a human rights
lawyer. We remain resolutely committed to the goal of a two-state
solution, but it feels a very distant prize at present. Can I ask
the Minister what she is doing to try to remove the barriers to
peace, including ensuring respect of holy sites such as the
al-Aqsa mosque, preventing Hamas rocket attacks, ending the
expansion of illegal settlements and finally recognising
Palestine as a state?
I am grateful to the right hon. Gentleman for his question, and
we are deeply concerned about the very fragile security
situation. We are working actively with key partners, including
members of the UN Security Council, and both parties to encourage
de-escalation of tensions. As he says, there have been some
horrific attacks, and we do want to see the situation
de-escalated. We are having those conversations to ensure that we
play our part in preventing further escalation.
Mr Speaker
I call the SNP spokesperson.
(Dundee West) (SNP)
The UK’s funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency
for Palestine Refugees was cut by more than 50% last year. UNRWA
provides essential services to Palestinian refugees in the west
bank, Gaza, Jordan, Lebanon and Syria, but it has been described
as “close to collapse” due to funding shortfalls. Can we truly
say, as Ambassador Allen stated to the UN Security Council in
2018, that
“the United Kingdom strongly supports peace”
between Israelis and Palestinians when it simultaneously sells
arms to one side and cuts humanitarian aid to the other?
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. As I have said, we
are committed to a two-state solution as the best way to deliver
Palestinian self-determination and a safe and
secure Israel My right hon.
Friend the Minister for Europe and North America announced last
year that we are providing £27 million to support UNRWA,
including £4.9 million for its flash appeal following the Gaza
conflicts in May.
(Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
(SNP)
T8. When words are not enough, sometimes actions are required to
bring about change. When is the UK going to ban the import of
goods that are produced in the Israeli settlements that they deem
to be illegal under international law?(906599)
I thank the hon. Gentleman for his question. We are clear on our
position on the settlements: they are illegal under international
law and we urge Israel to end
settlement expansion. This is something that we raise with our
counterparts.
