Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Baroness Fookes Excerpts

Thursday 22nd May 2025 Lords Chamber

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (Lord Collins of Highbury) (Lab)]

I thank both noble Lords for their questions and contributions.

I say to the noble Lord, Lord Callanan, that the United Kingdom has played an active role in co-ordination with our international partners since the beginning of the conflict. The Foreign Secretary has visited Israel and the Occupied Territories three times since taking office, and we have pressed for a resolution to secure a ceasefire and to see the return of all hostages. That is absolutely the first ask of this Government: ceasefire and the return of the hostages.

I want to reflect on a point that the noble Lord, Lord Purvis, made. We are absolutely committed to upholding our responsibilities under domestic and international law. By the way, the independence of the ICJ is something that we value. We are not going to put pressure on the court; it knows its job and we will facilitate that, but it is independent and we respect its independence as an international court. We have been absolutely consistent in ensuring that we act in a manner consistent with our legal obligations under international law.

As the noble Lord, Lord Purvis said, humanitarian aid must never be used as a political tool or military tactic. The UK will not support any aid mechanism that seeks to deliver political or military objectives and puts vulnerable civilians at risk. That is the answer to the noble Lord, Lord Callanan. That is why this Government and the previous Government have been committed to supporting the best possible means of getting aid into Gaza, which remains UNRWA. We are absolutely committed to that.

We should see that the blocking of aid and its disastrous consequences do not put Israel’s case. The people of Israel, who want and deserve security, particularly after the atrocities of 7 October, are absolutely not supporting the rhetoric of Netanyahu and some of his Cabinet members, or the means by which it is expressed. We are absolutely determined that we should be very clear about our position. My noble friend Lady Chapman, the Minister for International Development, has been in Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories this week. We have made our position on our diplomatic workers very clear to the Israeli Government and will continue to do so. I have visited the Occupied Territories and seen some of the actions of what I would call independent settler outposts, which have behaved really appallingly. Now, with the IDF more focused in Gaza, those very people—the outpost settlers—are taking on the duties of the IDF. I think that that is the cause of some of the problems.

During her visit this week, the Minister announced £4 million in new support to organisations on the ground in Gaza, which we will continue to support. This will cover essential medicines and medical supplies for up to 32,000 people, safe drinking water for up to 60,000 people and food parcels for up to 14,000 people. That is what we are talking about: basic, fundamental issues that need to be addressed. So far, since 7 October, we have provided 405,000 patient consultations across Gaza, food aid to at least 647,000 people, and improved water, sanitation, and hygiene services. We know that the situation is absolutely desperate, which is why we took the action we did. We are, together with our partners, strongly opposed to the expansion of Israel’s military operations in Gaza. We have reaffirmed our calls for the Israeli Government to stop its military operations and immediately allow humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.

Yesterday, the Foreign Secretary announced new sanctions to target those supporting violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank, following extremely concerning surges in this type of violence. Of course, we announced as part of the Statement the formal pause in free trade agreement negotiations with Israel, effective immediately. This is because it is not possible to advance discussions on deeper trading relationships with a Netanyahu Government who are pursuing policies that are absolutely damaging to the UK, the wider region and, most importantly, Israeli citizens themselves. This is the really important thing: we are committed to a two-state solution and to a political solution. We are doing everything we possibly can to achieve that, and we are committed to supporting the Palestinian Authority and their reforms. I am not going to say how far they have reached, but it is essential we do that, because it will form part of the process for a longer-term solution. We are absolutely committed to ensuring not only that the people of Palestine, Gaza and the Occupied Territories can live in peace and security but that that applies to the State of Israel.

[The Deputy Speaker (Baroness Fookes) (Con)]

My Lords, the noble Lord, Lord Campbell-Savours wishes to take part remotely, and I now invite him to speak.