Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Palestinian unity government following the discovery of the three murdered Israeli teenagers.
Answered by Baroness Warsi
Our Consul-General in Jerusalem and the Secretary of State for the Home Department, my right hon. Friend the Member for Maidenhead, (Mrs May), met Prime Minister Hamdallah of the interim, technocratic government on Tuesday 2 July.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what action they are proposing in the United Nations to alleviate the situations in Syria and Iraq; and what assessment they have made of the likelihood of the United Nations taking such action.
Answered by Baroness Warsi
The UK is actively working with our partners, including the Friends of Syria Core Group (‘London 11') and the UN in bringing about a sustainable solution to the crisis in Syria through a negotiated political transition by mutual consent - this is the principle in the Geneva Communiqué agreed by the UN, the League of Arab States and the UN Security Council.
The UK is also at the forefront of the international response to the humanitarian crisis in Syria. Our total humanitarian funding for Syria and the region is now £600 million and we are leading efforts in the UN Security Council in pressing for a stronger Resolution that would give the UN's humanitarian agencies the authority they have been asking for to deliver help to millions of Syrians in urgent need of humanitarian aid.
The UK has also announced £5 million of humanitarian assistance in response to the situation in Iraq, where the situation is fast-moving and complex. There is a need for new international efforts and mechanisms to stem the flow of arms to extremist groups, cut off their finances and prevent them from exploiting the economic assets that they have seized. The UK will be making proposals for this work.
Asked by: Lord Turnberg (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the Palestinian Authority about the alleged kidnapping of Israeli teenagers on 12 June.
Answered by Baroness Warsi
The Minister of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right Hon. Friend the Member for Faversham and Mid Kent (Mr Robertson), discussed this with Palestinian Prime Minister Hamdallah and other government officials on 18 June, during his visit to the region. Mr Robertson expressed his concerns over the kidnapping, welcomed President Abbas's condemnation of it and was briefed on Palestinian security co-operation with the Israelis.