Extracts from FCDO
Questions
Humanitarian Situation in Gaza
(Cynon Valley) (Lab)
1. What steps he is taking to help improve the humanitarian
situation in Gaza.(901930)
(Sheffield Central)
(Lab)
12. What steps he is taking to help improve the humanitarian
situation in Gaza.(901944)
(Leeds North West)
(Lab/Co-op)
15. If he will resume funding of the United Nations Relief and
Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East.(901947)
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office ( )
We are doing all we can to increase aid into Gaza. With our
allies, we will take decisions on the future of UNRWA funding
after scrutinising Catherine Colonna’s interim report on UNRWA
neutrality.
We have heard this morning some shocking reports about
Palestinian medical staff in Gaza being blindfolded, detained,
forced to strip and repeatedly beaten by Israeli troops, after a
raid on Nasser Hospital last month. There is footage from Khan
Yunis showing men stripped and kneeling, and patients with their
hands bound being wheeled in beds. Do the UK Government believe
that the Israeli Government are responsible for the conduct of
their forces, and that this clearly appears to be torture and is
in breach of international law, including the universal
declaration of human rights and article 18 of the Geneva
convention? What are the UK Government going to do about
this?
Mr Mitchell
The hon. Lady is right to say that Israel must comply with
the Geneva convention. We have seen these reports. A full
explanation and investigation is required, and that is what the
British Government are pressing for. I point out to her that,
when it comes to targeting operations, lawyers are embedded in
the Israeli and Israel Defence Forces
command, just as happens in Britain, which should ensure the
acceptance and honouring of international humanitarian law. But I
agree that a full explanation is required.
For months we have seen the horrifying images of children in Gaza
mutilated or killed by bombing, and now we see them starving. Aid
by air and sea is welcome, but it is insufficient and it is a
diversion from Israel’s responsibility. Yesterday, 12 Israeli
human rights organisations called out their own Government for
failing to comply with the International Court of Justice ruling
to facilitate access for humanitarian aid. Does the Minister
agree that the Israeli Government should be told by the UK and
our allies to unlock aid and end the killing, or face real
consequences?
Mr Mitchell
As the hon. Gentleman knows, the Prime Minister and the Foreign
Secretary have both pressed Prime Minister Netanyahu, and indeed
President Herzog, to ensure that more aid can get into Gaza. As
the hon. Gentleman will also know, it is the policy of the
British Government to do everything we can to achieve a pause so
that we can get the hostages out and get more aid in, and move
towards a sustainable ceasefire. We are doing everything we can
to try to achieve that.
What we are seeing in Gaza is a starvation-level event. The
United States has taken the desperate measure of air drops and
flotillas, which do not direct aid like land-based aid. The only
organisation big enough to fully distribute aid in order to avoid
starvation is UNRWA. Canada reviewed the interim report of the UN
Office of Internal Oversight Services and has resumed funding.
Sweden has received bilateral assurances on the same actions that
the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office is supposedly
looking for from UNRWA and has resumed funding. It is scandalous
that the UK Government’s position is still for a suspension of
funds, despite the interim report and without evidence of
wrongdoing being provided by Israeli in the first place. The
British public do not want to be responsible for starvation in
Gaza. When will the Minister resume the funding?
Mr Mitchell
As I have told the House before, no British funding is due until
April and enough funds have now come forward to ensure that
adequate supplies are available. We are awaiting the report of
the UN Office of Internal Oversight Services and the interim
report from Catherine Colonna, the former French Foreign
Minister. The view we take is that when we have seen those, we
very much hope we will have the reassurance to recommence
funding. That is also the position of the US, Germany, Australia,
Italy, Finland, the Netherlands and Switzerland. I hope that the
hon. Gentleman will be comforted by the fact that we are very
much trying to resolve this matter as speedily as we can.
Mr Speaker
I call the Chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee.
(Rutland and Melton)
(Con)
The Foreign Affairs Committee recently returned from al-Arish,
which is the staging point for aid into Gaza. It was very
difficult to see thousands of trucks on that border. The
Government have been clear that Israel has a
legal obligation to ensure that aid reaches civilians. The last
legal assessment took place at the end of last year. Can my right
hon. Friend tell the House, in legal terms, whether Israel is demonstrating
a commitment to international humanitarian law? If he will not
tell us in the House, will he please write to me?
Mr Mitchell
I thank my hon. Friend for her visit with the Select Committee
and for her comments. We are quite clear that Israel has the capacity
and ability to abide by international humanitarian law. We review
it on a regular basis, but as of today that remains the
position.
(Chipping Barnet)
(Con)
The UN mission team that recently visited Israel concluded
that
“there are reasonable grounds to believe that conflict-related
sexual violence occurred in multiple locations during the 7
October attacks”.
In the light of that appalling and shocking conclusion, will the
Government redouble their efforts to get the hostages home,
because they might be suffering a similar fate to those victims
on 7 October?
Mr Mitchell
I agree with my right hon. Friend. She will know that the Prime
Minister, the Foreign Secretary and Lord Ahmad have all met the
families of the hostages. I had the privilege of meeting some of
the families last week, the second occasion I have done so within
the precincts of this House. She is right. We are doing
everything we can to increase the flow of aid and get the
hostages home. We will continue to do so.
(Penistone and Stocksbridge)
(Con)
One of the most troubling aspects of the 7 October massacre was
the fact that many ordinary Gazans—reports indicate hundreds, or
even thousands—followed the Hamas terrorists into Israel and participated
in the atrocities. Reports suggest that civilians kidnapped
Israelis and sold them to Gaza-based terrorist groups, and
committed further unspeakable acts of violence, including sexual
violence. Is my right hon. Friend aware of those reports, and
does he share my concerns about Hamas’s ongoing indoctrination of
ordinary Gazan citizens?
Mr Mitchell
My hon. Friend makes a good point. I am aware of those reports.
The fact remains that the appalling events of 7 October were, as
I have said in the House before, the worst atrocity and the worst
killing of Jewish people since the holocaust and the second world
war. We continue to want total accountability for the terrible
events that took place on that day.
(Orkney and Shetland)
(LD)
Accepting what the Minister says about there being no money due
to go to UNRWA until April, can I say to him, however, that for
us to continue not to fund UNRWA sends a truly dreadful signal to
other countries on the world stage? Canada and Sweden have
resumed their funding. Surely we should be attending to this now
as a matter of some urgency?
Mr Mitchell
I listed the countries that take the same view as us. The right
hon. Gentleman is right that there is a division, but Britain is
not due to provide any funding until we reach the next financial
year in April. We will, of course, seek to do everything we can
to resolve the matter by the time that funding is due.
Sir (Northampton North) (Con)
Can the deputy Foreign Secretary confirm that Israel is co-operating
with an increasing number of lorries entering Gaza carrying
essential humanitarian aid? I have been looking up the figures:
16,405 aid lorries, 203,300 tonnes of food and 26,160 tonnes of
water. Is it not correct that the Israelis have said there is no
limit on the amount of aid that can come in, but that there is a
delay once it has passed Israeli checks and before it gets into
Gaza proper?
Mr Mitchell
My right hon. and learned Friend is right to say that there has
been an increase in the number of trucks getting in. In February
there were, on average, only 97. In March that figure is 162. So
there has been an improvement, but the House will recognise that
there is nothing like enough getting through. The easiest way to
do so is by truck and road. It is because that is so difficult
that we have had to find other mechanisms, such as the maritime
and air routes.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Wigan) (Lab)
May I return the Minister to the serious allegations made today,
following a BBC investigation, that medics in Gaza were detained,
stripped and beaten while trying to perform their life-saving
humanitarian duties? All of us in the House have repeatedly
called on all parties to abide by international law, but the
Government have so far declined to say that the provisional
measures of the International Court of Justice should be
implemented in full. Will he now tell us that they should be, and
that the UK will support the International Criminal Court
investigation, led by Andrew Cayley, to ensure not only that all
allegations against all parties are investigated, but that there
is accountability for those who break the law?
Mr Mitchell
The hon. Lady is quite right: there needs to be a full and
thorough investigation and accountability in respect of what was
reported today by the BBC, and I can assure her that the Foreign
Office is pressing for full transparency and accountability on
that matter.
But surely the Minister can see the problem. Unless the ICJ’s
provisional ruling is implemented and the ICC is allowed to go
about its work, those words are simply meaningless; and unless
the international community makes it crystal clear that rules
will be upheld by all parties and those who do not uphold them
will be held accountable, more people will die. Peace is built on
the bedrock of international law. May I ask the Minister again to
make it clear to the House that the Government will support the
ICC’s investigation of Hamas as well as its investigation
of Israel and will press
for the full implementation of the ICJ’s provisional ruling, and
that international law will be upheld not when it is convenient
but always, as the precondition for peace?
Mr Mitchell
Let me be very clear about this: we did not believe, and do not
believe, that the ICJ referral is helpful to attempts to secure
dialogue. We respect the role and independence of the ICJ and
will consider any advisory opinion, but we did not think it
helpful, without the consent of both parties, for the Court to
deliver an advisory opinion on what is essentially a bilateral
dispute. However, we keep all these matters under review and, as
I have said, our current position is that we
believe Israel has both the
capacity and the intent to abide by international humanitarian
law.
Mr Speaker
I call the SNP spokesperson.
Brendan O’Hara (Argyll and Bute) (SNP)
The Minister will have seen the shocking images of parachutes
dropping aid into Gaza at the same moment as a barrage of Israeli
missiles struck. There is, of course, every chance that the aid
and the missiles originated from the same source, and I wonder at
the level of cognitive dissonance required to supply aid to
innocent civilians while at the same time providing the means by
which Israel can continue to
kill them indiscriminately. When will this Government recognise
the moral absurdity of selling weapons to Israel while attempting
to salve their conscience by airdropping aid to those civilians
who are fortunate enough to have survived the bombardment?
Mr Mitchell
As I think I have mentioned to the hon. Gentleman before, in this
country we have the toughest arms control mechanisms anywhere,
but we accept that Israel has a right of
self-defence, and this has to be seen through that prism as well
as the prism through which he sees it. But I can tell him that we
continually keep these matters under review—that is not only
international humanitarian law, but the arms export regime—and we
will continue to do so.
Israel and Palestine: Two-state Solution
(Newport West) (Lab)
2. What steps his Department is taking to support a two-state
solution between Israel and
Palestine.(901932)
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office ( )
We must generate momentum towards a permanent peace, with an
immediate humanitarian pause leading to a sustainable
ceasefire.
I thank the Minister for his comments. Everyone in the House
wants to see a negotiated diplomatic agreement to resolve the
Israeli-Palestinian conflict, based on two states, but does he
agree that the first step towards achieving that is an immediate
humanitarian ceasefire and the release of all hostages?
Mr Mitchell
The problem with calling for an immediate ceasefire is that
neither side wants to have one, and therefore, in my view, it
would be an unhelpful intervention. That is why the British
Government, and other Governments too, have called for a pause to
get the hostages out and get aid in, which can then be built on
and lead to a sustainable ceasefire, and that is what we are
seeking to do.
(Buckingham) (Con)
The ideal of a two-state solution is one that unites this House.
However, there are practical barriers, not least the fact that
Hamas are surging in the polls—what polls there are—across the
Palestinian Authority, and the Palestinian Authority continue to
have hateful preaching in the school curriculum that is breeding
the sort of hate that leads to evil organisations such as Hamas
having a grip on Gaza, and it continues to pay salaries to
convicted terrorists’ families. If we are to get a two-state
solution, that needs to stop, does it not?
Mr Mitchell
In respect of the textbook allegations that my hon. Friend made,
I have received those allegations. Last week I had a meeting with
the head of UNRWA, Mr Lazzarini, in which I presented him with
the evidence and asked for a full account. In respect of the
two-state solution, let me be clear that within both the Israeli
Government and civil society throughout Israel
there are pragmatic voices that believe in self-determination for
Palestine as the only way forward. It is very important that we
try to build on that vision, which is why the Foreign Secretary
is so committed to trying to bring people together so that when
the political track can open, it has real substance to it.
(Bolton South East)
(Lab)
Does the Minister agree that a two-state solution has become more
difficult because of the construction of over 700,000 illegal
homes in the west bank, which continues with the backing of the
IDF and the Israeli Government? Even now, we see images of people
being turfed out of their homes and others taking over, and
illegal settlement homes are being sold to people in the USA.
Mr Mitchell
There are things that we want the Israeli Government to do in
that respect. We want them to release frozen funds, halt
settlement expansion and hold to account those responsible for
settler violence, which is why Britain has sanctioned four
extremist Israeli settlers. Let me be clear: as I understand it,
the Israeli Government are not against Palestinian statehood but
are against unilateral recognition without bilateral
negotiations. That was the burden of a vote in the Knesset on 18
February this year.
(Sutton and Cheam) (Con)
The wider discussion of a two-state solution outside this place
is being misrepresented. Restaurants are being boycotted for
selling Coca-Cola, because people think the company
supports Israel The Coca-Cola
factory in the west bank is actually owned by a Palestinian
franchisee, so we need to educate people. To get back to the
discussion of a two-state solution, we clearly need a ceasefire
and the hostages to be released by Hamas. Will my right hon.
Friend detail what discussions he is having in that regard?
Mr Mitchell
Those discussions are going on all the time with our friends and
allies, with the regional powers, at the United Nations and,
indeed, directly with Israel As I said, the
Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary talk regularly to Prime
Minister Netanyahu, and we will continue to do so. My hon. Friend
eloquently set out the reason for the Government’s policy of
trying to create a pause to get the hostages out and aid in, and
we will continue to pursue that objective.
Mr Speaker
I call shadow Minister.
(Caerphilly) (Lab)
The situation in Gaza is truly appalling, but the situation in
the west bank is also a cause for huge concern. Since the
horrific 7 October attacks, over 400 Palestinians have been
killed and thousands have been detained. Further to the question
from my hon. Friend the Member for Bolton South East (), last week Israel advanced plans
for 3,400 new homes in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. As a
two-state solution is the only path to a lasting peace, does the
Minister agree that a firm position on these issues must be taken
now by the United Kingdom and the international community?
Mr Mitchell
I hope that I have set out my broad agreement with what the hon.
Gentleman says. Britain wants to see steps taken against illegal
settlements and settlers who have committed crimes—we want to see
them arrested, tried and punished for those crimes. We want to
see the Palestinian Authority reinvigorated, with new leadership
and a strong approach to taking up the roles that it will need to
fulfil when the sky clears and there is a moment for the
political track to begin.
Gaza: Sustainable Ceasefire
(New Forest West) (Con)
3. What assessment he has made of the steps needed to secure a
sustainable ceasefire in Gaza. (901933)
(Banff and Buchan) (Con)
13. What assessment he has made of the steps needed to secure a
sustainable ceasefire in Gaza. (901945)
(Paisley and Renfrewshire
North) (SNP)
18. What discussions he has had with his US counterpart on a
potential UN Security Council resolution on a ceasefire in Gaza.
(901951)
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office ( )
We need a humanitarian pause to get aid in and hostages out,
leading to a sustainable, permanent ceasefire. We are pressing
for this with Israel regional
leaders and our wider international partners, including the
United States.
Given the importance of their role, the Palestinian Authority
will require thoroughgoing reform, won’t they?
Mr Mitchell
My right hon. Friend is right, and that is why both the Foreign
Secretary and the noble Lord Ahmad have been in discussions with
the Palestinian Authority and the wider regional community—to try
to ensure that when the moment comes, as I set out in my response
to the hon. Member for Caerphilly (), the Palestinian Authority are
able to seize it.
Does my right hon. Friend agree that an unsustainable ceasefire
that rapidly collapses would only make it more difficult to build
the confidence required for peace, and that if there was a
humanitarian pause now, we could get more aid in and hostages
out, and it could help to bring about the conditions required for
a sustainable ceasefire?
Mr Mitchell
My hon. Friend has put his finger on a critical point. We do not
believe that calling for a general and immediate ceasefire and
hoping that it would somehow become permanent will work. A
ceasefire will not last if the hostages are still being held. We
cannot just will it if neither side wants it, and the conditions
need to be in place for it not to collapse within days.
Some of these answers—“We have the toughest arms licence regime”,
“We have urged Israel to follow
international law”—are the same meaningless, supine nonsense week
after week, month after month from this Government. I have said
many times that it sickens me that although this Government—and
indeed the Labour Front Benchers—called out Putin’s war crimes in
Ukraine at light speed, they prevaricate on doing the same when
it comes to the Israeli bombardment and siege of Gaza. It sickens
me that this Government have abstained on UN Security Council
ceasefire resolutions. Will the Minister guarantee that the UK
will work with partners to draft a resolution that reflects the
will of this House, and finally vote for a ceasefire to end the
suffering of so many in Gaza?
Mr Mitchell
On the hon. Gentleman’s final point, which I think was the
question, the answer is yes, but in respect of everything else he
said, the answer is no.
(Feltham and Heston)
(Lab/Co-op)
Women in Gaza are giving birth without even having a chair to sit
down on. They are having caesareans without medication. The
Minister will know that many aid agencies have repeatedly called
out the horrific suffering of the Palestinian people and Israel’s
unacceptable restriction on aid flows. We have been talking about
the urgency of an immediate humanitarian ceasefire; how urgently
are the Government actually pushing for this with both sides and
with partners in the middle east—not just for the urgency of the
ceasefire, but for a plan for what comes next?
Mr Mitchell
I can reassure the hon. Lady that on both of those two
points—pressing for a pause and pressing all the regional powers
on what comes next—the Government are actively and continually
engaged. On her first point about the terrible plight of women in
Gaza, that is why the British Government gave nearly £5 million
just a week or so ago specifically to try to alleviate the
desperate circumstances in Gaza that so many women find
themselves in.
Mr Speaker
I call the Scottish National party spokesperson, .
(Stirling) (SNP)
The best way to deal with a sustainable ceasefire is obviously to
deal with the ongoing humanitarian crisis, and that is best done
by UNRWA, not through individual bilateral actions. The Minister
mentions states that have suspended their funding, and the
situation is evolving really fast. The EU has just announced €50
million for UNRWA, and two further tranches of €16 million,
subject to the satisfactory completion of an audit. I take the
point that no funding is due from the UK to UNRWA until April,
but what further reassurance does the UK need to ensure the
funding will be in place, because UNRWA is the best organisation
to disburse it and the UK risks being very much on the wrong side
of these developments?
Mr Mitchell
I do not agree with the hon. Gentleman’s last point. It is true
that Canada, Sweden, Spain and the EU, with conditions, expect to
be able to resume funding, but as I mentioned earlier, America,
Germany, Australia, Italy, Finland, the Netherlands and
Switzerland take the same view as us. To the substantive points
he makes, we are in discussions with the leader of UNRWA, Mr
Lazzarini, and we are awaiting the report from the former French
Foreign Minister and the report from the UN. We hope that as a
result of those reports, sufficient change will be secured, so
that we can continue to fund UNRWA, but the hon. Gentleman should
be in no doubt that we have fully funded UNRWA into the next
financial year.
Israeli Occupation of the West Bank
(Glenrothes) (SNP)
7. What recent assessment he has made of the implications for his
policies of the Israeli occupation of the west bank. (901937)
(Kilmarnock and Loudoun)
(SNP)
20. What recent assessment he has made of the implications for
his policies of the Israeli occupation of the west bank.
(901954)
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office ( )
Israel must not undermine prospects for peace and security in the
west bank. As the occupying power, Israel must protect the
civilian population.
The Minister forgot to mention that this is one of the rare
occasions on which the United Kingdom Government have a
long-standing position that Israel is acting
unlawfully in the west bank. Some 700,000 separate criminal acts
of unlawful occupation have been endorsed and instructed by
Benjamin Netanyahu. Because that illegal occupation has gone
unpunished, we now see extremists, with the tacit acquiescence
and sometimes direct support of the Israeli Defence Force,
committing acts of cold-blooded murder against innocent
civilians. If they do not stand up to criminals, those crimes
will get worse. The Minister mentioned that two individuals have
been sanctioned for their crimes in the west bank. Why have the
President or the Prime Minister of Israel
who ordered that unlawful occupation, not also been
sanctioned?
Mr Mitchell
The Government pursue the objectives I have set out clearly to
the House in a way most likely to bring success. The five core
asks that are so relevant to many of these questions are: the
release of all hostages; formation of a new Palestinian
Government for the west bank and Gaza; removing Hamas’s capacity
to launch attacks against Israel Hamas no longer
being in charge of Gaza; and, with our allies, the provision of
serious practical and technical support for the Palestinian
Authority. That is the approach that is most likely to command
support and not, I fear, the line that the hon. Gentleman
took.
The Minister said that Israel has a duty to
protect civilians, but in the west bank there have been 400
deaths. There are now testimonies from Palestinian civilians,
including women and children, who have been subject to kidnap,
torture and abuse at the hands of Israeli settlers, yet the UK
Government have sanctioned only four illegal settlers. What
further action are the UK Government going to take against
settlers? Surely it is time to ban the trade of goods from those
illegal settlements once and for all.
Mr Mitchell
I really do not think that that would be a very sensible thing to
do. We do not comment across the Floor of the House on who is
about to be sanctioned or where the sanctions regime is going,
but the hon. Member may rest assured that we keep these matters
under very careful review.
Mr Speaker
I call the shadow Minister.
(Hornsey and Wood Green)
(Lab)
As Ramadan begins and Passover and Easter approach, it is vital
that all places of worship in Jerusalem be respected. I was
extremely concerned by suggestions from Israeli Minister Ben-Gvir
that restrictions could be imposed on worshippers at al-Aqsa
mosque. I welcome subsequent statements by Israeli authorities
that the sanctity of the holiday will be preserved. Authorities
must show respect and restraint at this crucial moment. Have the
Government made it clear to Israeli counterparts that Minister
Ben-Gvir’s comments were unacceptable and inflamed tensions, and
that the status quo arrangements must be maintained?
Mr Mitchell
The hon. Member is entirely right about the importance of
religious freedom, particularly in the circumstances that she so
clearly set out. She may rest assured that those are points that
the British Government make very strongly to Israel It is helpful
that the Opposition and the Government speak with one voice on
that very important matter.
Israeli Hostages in Gaza
(West Bromwich East)
(Con)
16. What steps his Department is taking to help secure the
release of Israeli hostages in Gaza. (901948)
(Harrow East) (Con)
17. What steps he is taking to support efforts to secure the
release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. (901950)
The Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Office ( )
We have been working tirelessly to secure the release of all
hostages, including British nationals, since 7 October.
Last week, the UN published its first report into the violence
against women in Israel on 7 October and
against hostages. It concluded that rape, gang rape and genital
mutilation were systematically used against Israeli women and
girls. The fact that the victims who survived do not trust the UN
enough to speak to it about their experience adds another layer
of heartbreak to the situation. What will my right hon. Friend
the Minister do to urge the UN to make it a priority to rebuild
trust and tell the world that #MeToo counts for Jews too?
Mr Mitchell
The world very much needs the United Nations, and I completely
recognise the position that my hon. Friend so eloquently
describes. We will do everything we can as a leading member of
the United Nations—one of the P5—to try to improve that
relationship. On the appalling events of October 7, which she
described, we are doing everything we can to try to help, as I
set out earlier.
The hostages have been in captivity for more than 100 days. The
New York Times has reported that of the 134 hostages still in
captivity, 50 may have been killed. Given that 10 Israeli
citizens have been in captivity in Gaza for more than 10 years,
does my right hon. Friend the Minister agree that there must
absolutely be a commitment to return the hostages before we can
move to a humanitarian ceasefire?
Mr Mitchell
Yes, my hon. Friend is absolutely correct. He sets out the
position extremely well. It is a top focus of all parts of the
British Government to try to get the hostages back, as I set out
earlier. The Prime Minister and the International Court of
Justice have called for their immediate release. Although I
cannot give a running commentary, we are working closely with the
US, Qatar and Egypt to secure their release.
(Rotherham) (Lab)
In the past five months, Israeli and Palestinian civilians have
borne the brunt of this conflict. We are getting only the
slightest glimpse of the rape, torture, hostage taking and murder
that is going on. Will the Minister tell us what our atrocity
prevention team and preventing sexual violence team are doing on
the ground to document and stop that?
Mr Mitchell
We are very clear that we seek to document atrocities so that
people can be held to account, no matter how long it takes. I set
out earlier the additional funding specifically to help women who
have been the subject of appalling sexual violence. I am grateful
to the hon. Lady and the International Development Committee for
their visit to the region. On the issue that she raises, the
British Government’s position is that there can be no
impunity.
(Denton and Reddish)
(Lab)
The utter tragedy in the middle east is that innocent civilians
on both sides are paying the price for failed politics and
extremism. To take the Minister back to his answer to the Chair
of the Foreign Affairs Committee, if he accepts
that Israel has the capacity
to meet international law, he is saying, is he not,
that Israel is in breach of
it?
Mr Mitchell
No, I am not saying that. I am saying that the current judgment
of the British Government is that Israel has both
the capacity and the intent to abide within international
humanitarian law. It is an issue that we keep under review, as
the hon. Gentleman will understand.
(Luton South) (Lab)
T4. State-hood is the inalienable right of Palestinian people and
not in the gift of any neighbour, so does the Minister agree that
no country has the right to veto the UK’s recognition of a
Palestinian state?(901958)
Mr Mitchell
The British Government have always made it clear that they will
recognise the Palestinian state when they think the time is right
and such recognition would be helpful.
(Middlesbrough) (Lab)
Israeli Minister Benny Gantz is the only person to have been
granted a special mission status certificate by the Foreign
Office since the beginning of last year, in effect protecting him
from arrest for his part in suspected breaches of international
law. According to reports, Israel did not grant
Gantz’s delegation official status, so can the Minister explain
why the UK Government still chose to provide diplomatic cover for
this individual?
Mr Mitchell
Whatever the position of the Israeli Government, let me assure
the hon. Member that Benny Gantz was received in this country. He
was seen by the Foreign Secretary, and his visit was most
welcome.
(Na h-Eileanan an
Iar) (Ind)
When Jeffrey Sachs, a UN adviser—from a Jewish American family,
incidentally—says on camera:
Israel has deliberately
starved the people of Gaza… I am not using an exaggeration. I’m
talking literally starving a population. Israel is
a criminal, is in non stop war crime status, now I believe in
genocidal status, and it is without shame, without remorse,
without truth, without insight into what it’s doing”,
and adds:
“This is a murderous gang in government right now. These are
zealots”,
does that not give the UK Government pause to reflect on the
funding of UNRWA, and to call for a ceasefire and the recognition
of Palestine, which 138 of 193 UN member states have done, rather
than see it wiped off the map?
Mr Mitchell
I think almost nothing that the hon. Gentleman has just said
could possibly be deemed helpful in trying to bring the two sides
together, achieve a pause, get the hostages out, get aid in and
achieve a sustainable ceasefire. Therefore, I am afraid I am
unable to offer any reassurance on any of the points he made.
(Oldham East and
Saddleworth) (Lab)
Does the Minister agree that the alleged detention, beating and
humiliation of 49 Palestinian medics at the Nasser Hospital last
month needs to be investigated by the International Criminal
Court—yes or no?
Mr Mitchell
This session ends with the same question with which it started,
and as I set out, we believe there must be accountability and we
have made that clear to the Israeli authorities.
Extract from Budget
Debate
(Rochdale) (WPB): As I was
saying, Madam Deputy Speaker. Even in Parliament, you cannot be a
maiden twice, but I hope you will permit me a moment of my eight
minutes to pay tribute to my predecessor, Tony Lloyd—as he was
when I first met him at the Labour party conference more than 40
years ago. He, a young, left-wing engineering union delegate; me,
even younger, from the Transport and General Workers’ Union. We
became fast friends then, and remained so through all the
decades. We marched together against nuclear weapons and against
the repeated massacres in Gaza at the hands of
the Israeli occupation forces. We voted in the
Lobby together against the renewal of Trident submarines. was a significant figure who
should never be forgotten in this House, and certainly will not
be forgotten in the Greater Manchester area where he was born and
where he practised his sincere political artistry over so many
years...
Extract from questions
to the Foreign Secretary (Lords)
Gaza: Humanitarian Aid
Question
3.51pm
Asked by
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and
Development Affairs what steps he is taking to increase the
amount of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
(Lab)
My Lords, I beg leave to ask the Question standing in my name on
the Order Paper, because humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza
and the release of the hostages are top priorities.
Noble Lords
Order!
The Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development
Affairs ( of Chipping Norton) (Con)
My Lords, we are doing all we can to increase aid into Gaza. We
have been collaborating with Jordan on humanitarian air drops and
are now working with partners to operationalise a maritime aid
corridor from Cyprus. However, this cannot substitute delivery by
land, which remains the best way to get aid in at the scale
needed. Israel must open more
land routes, including in the north, for longer and with fewer
screening requirements. I have been clear: we need an immediate
humanitarian pause to increase aid into Gaza and get the hostages
out. Israel must remove
restrictions on aid and restore electricity, water and
telecommunications.
(Lab)
My Lords, the House understands that aid from the air is
problematic and aid from the sea takes time. Can the Foreign
Secretary explain to the House why he has been unable to persuade
the Israeli Government to allow the border crossings to be opened
to provide the access for the hundreds of trucks needed daily?
What are the Government intending to do so that, when the aid
reaches Gaza to the people who so desperately need it, it is
distributed to the people on the ground by local networks not
controlled by Hamas?
of Chipping Norton (Con)
We have repeatedly made points about the need to open crossings
and allow more aid in. I can give the latest figures to the
House. They are slightly more encouraging. The average number of
trucks getting through per day in January was 140. This fell to
97 in February but has gone up to 162 so far in March. So we are
making a difference. The opening of Kerem Shalom happened, and
that made a difference. With regard to what is happening on the
maritime front, which is encouraging, I say that,
if Israel really wanted to
help, it could open the Ashdod port, which is a fully functioning
port in Israel That could
really maximise the delivery of aid from Cyprus straight
into Israel and therefore
into Gaza.
On the noble Viscount’s question about how to make sure that aid
gets around Gaza, that is one of the trickiest pieces of the
jigsaw. One of the things that Israel needs to
do is give out more visas to UN workers who are capable of
distributing the aid when it arrives in Gaza.
(Con)
My Lords, I am very pleased that Mark Bryson-Richardson met with
COGAT today. I would ask the Foreign Secretary to confirm the
following: first, there is no backlog at all at the Kerem Shalom
crossing from Israel secondly, there
is a backlog at Rafah—there are columns of trucks in sovereign
Egypt after they have been inspected and cleared by the Israeli
authorities; thirdly, as has just been said, there is also,
sadly, a backlog on the Gazan side, where the UN agencies are
struggling to distribute the aid at the pace that Israel is facilitating
it through.
of Chipping Norton (Con)
I am delighted that Mark Bryson-Richardson, who I appointed as my
aid co-ordinator, has met with COGAT; that is very useful. I can
say to my noble friend that, yes, of course, getting more aid
into Gaza requires the work of more than just Israel taking the
relevant steps. But Israel is the country
that could make the greatest difference, because some of the
blockages, screening problems and all the rest of it are its
responsibility. One proof point of that is that 18 trucks were
dispatched from Jordan and they were held for 18 days at the
Allenby/King Hussein bridge crossing. That seems to me the sort
of the thing we need to act on faster to get that aid into Gaza.
As I said in answer to the previous question, once it is in Gaza,
it needs people to distribute it. That is about visas and
capabilities, and deconfliction.
(LD)
The Foreign Secretary was very eloquent in describing the
unnecessary blockages that have been put in place. He will agree
with me that Article 50 of the Geneva Convention, on the
requirement on occupying powers for children, is that they will
not
“hinder the application of … food, medical care and protection …
in favour of children under fifteen years, expectant mothers and
mothers of children under seven years”.
Does the Foreign Secretary agree that these hindrances and
blockages are potentially a war crime under the Geneva Convention
and that, if any Ministers in the Israeli Government are actively
blocking the inward supply of aid, we should consider sanctioning
them?
of Chipping Norton (Con)
It is our legal position, and has been for some time,
that Israel is the occupying
power in Gaza; that was the case before 7 October. After the
evacuation of Gaza in 2005, it was not truly freed up as an
independent functioning territory, so it is true that the way
that Israel behaves as the
occupying power in allowing humanitarian aid into Gaza is a
material consideration when it comes to looking at how it is
complying with international humanitarian law. As I have said
many times at this Dispatch Box already, what matters is whether
it has the commitment and the capability, and whether it is
complying. That is what we keep under review.
(Lab)
My Lords, the words that the Foreign Secretary has just used are
the ones he used last Tuesday. But today in the Commons, was asked a question by
on precisely this point,
particularly in relation to the BBC investigation into the
treatment of medics at the hospital in Gaza. She asked why we were not ensuring
that the Israelis comply with the provisional measures of the
ICJ. was unable to support Lisa
Nandy’s call. Why?
of Chipping Norton (Con)
What I would say, as I think Minister Mitchell said in the House
of Commons, is that these are very disturbing pictures and
reports that have come out from this hospital. We need to get to
the bottom of what exactly happened; we need answers from the
Israelis. When we have those, it will be easier to comment.
(Non-Afl)
My Lords, this crisis has been caused by Hamas, which hides
terrorists and weapons in densely packed civilian areas and
steals food and fuel meant for humanitarian relief. It is
absolutely clear that there will be no prospect of peace —let
alone the two-state solution that the Government want to
see—until Hamas is completely removed from power in Gaza. This is
why the Government should be doing all they possibly can to
ensure that Israel has all the
support it needs to win this war.
of Chipping Norton (Con)
I thank the noble Lord for his question. We completely agree that
we will not have a two-state solution if the people responsible
for 7 October are still running any part of Gaza. Obviously, what
we would like to see is an immediate pause, the hostages released
and a series of conditions put in place to make sure that the
pause turns into a permanent ceasefire without a return to
fighting. One of those conditions would be that the people
responsible for 7 October—the leadership of Hamas—would have to
leave Gaza and the terrorist infrastructure would have to be
dismantled. If that did not happen through a process of
negotiation, the noble Lord is no doubt right that there would be
a return to fighting. That needs to be understood by people.
(CB)
My Lords—
(Non-Afl)
My Lords—
(Con)
My Lords, can we hear from the Cross Benches and then the
Conservative Benches?
(Non-Afl)
I think also on this side.
(Con)
My Lords, can we hear from the Cross Benches and then the
Conservative Benches?
(Non-Afl)
That is your call.
(CB)
My Lords, I thank the Foreign Secretary for his first response,
which set out very clearly and practically what the Government
are trying to achieve in the Middle East. The problem though is
pretty clear; the problem is the Israeli Government, who are not
prepared, it seems, to accept the suggestion by the UK and the
United States. So will he now make it clear to the Israeli
Government that their continuing pressure on Palestinians,
especially on their women and children, is absolutely
unacceptable and, furthermore, that it risks antagonising
millions of Arabs and Muslims for years and years to come? I say
that having served for many years myself in the Middle East.
of Chipping Norton (Con)
I am very familiar with the noble Lord’s service in a number of
our embassies in the Middle East and his long experience in that
part of the world. I say to him that we have said repeatedly
that Israel must abide by
international humanitarian law. As the noble Lord, Lord Austin,
said, Israel has a right to
self-defence. Hamas fighters started this conflict by their
appalling invasion and terrorist pogrom in Israel which led to
the murder of over 1,400 people—and it is worth remembering that
they still hold hostages. We are more than 150 days in. If Hamas
fighters wanted to end this conflict, they could do so
tomorrow—they could do so today—by releasing those hostages,
getting their leaders out of Gaza and laying down their weapons.
They do not do that. But the noble Lord is absolutely right to
make the point that we had this experience fighting terrorist
insurgencies in our own country, in our own history. You have to
obey the rules and obey the law; if you do not and you lower
yourself to the standards of the people you are fighting against,
that does not end well.
