Sudan: Government Response

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Monday 22nd April 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Gentleman will understand the great difficulties in helping directly on the ground; I know the matter is of great interest, both to him and to the Prime Minister’s envoy for freedom of religion or belief, my hon. Friend the Member for Congleton (Fiona Bruce). We must continue to find every possible way of supporting the important groups that he mentioned.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

I draw the Minister’s attention to a report on the BBC website, in case he has not read it, by Zeinab Mohammed Salih, a Sudanese journalist. She recalls:

“People have told me of ethnically targeted killings and sexual violence. They remain traumatised, months afterwards.”

The Minister may be aware that months before the war broke out, sexual violence and gender-based violence was being used against women. In June 2023, it was estimated that there were more than 60,000 survivors of conflict-related sexual violence in Sudan, and we continue to see reports of sexual violence. What steps are the Government taking to address that really important issue, and to prevent further cases of violence, and of rape being used as a war weapon?

[Mr Mitchell]

I am afraid that the hon. Lady is entirely right. We have read these reports and many others with horror. That is one of the reasons why we are supporting the Centre for Information Resilience, so that we can do everything we can to deter there being any question of impunity, but it is extraordinarily difficult. As she rightly said, what is happening in Darfur bears all the hallmarks of ethnic cleansing.

Israel and Gaza

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Tuesday 26th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

In terms of the restrictions to which the hon. Gentleman refers, a little earlier I set out how I believe those restrictions can be mitigated, particularly in respect of the opening hours at various crossing points. There is also the need for more visas, some 50 of which I mentioned are pending. He may rest assured that the Government use our very strong relationships in the region with Egypt and Israel to propagate the case for more aid and more humanitarian relief getting in by all means. We also do more than that, because we were dropping food from the air only yesterday, thanks to the work of the Royal Air Force. We will do more of that if we cannot get more in through the road routes.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

The Minister will remember that last week, in the previous statement, I mentioned a briefing I had attended with other Members that was led by leading aid organisations, including Oxfam, Islamic Relief and Action Against Hunger. They detailed the scale of the suffering and the scale of the man-made famine. The Minister has been on his feet for more than an hour now, and he has mentioned all the different ways we are getting aid in, but the reality is that only 137 trucks entered Gaza yesterday, according to Oxfam. We know that pre-October it was 500 trucks a day. UNRWA is unmatched in its aid distribution. The Minister has said that. Does the Minister not agree that a way to mitigate this suffering, is to restore the funding to UNRWA now?

[Mr Mitchell]

The funding to UNRWA from Britain has not stopped; we are paid up effectively until the end of April. Let me reassure the hon. Lady that as soon we have seen the two reports to which I have referred, I very much hope that, subject to the necessary changes being made, we will indeed be able to commit to the future funding that she and I would like to see in the right circumstances.

Israel and Gaza

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Tuesday 19th March 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

I very much agree with my right hon. and learned Friend that Hamas are using ordinary people in Gaza as a human shield. It is utterly repugnant as well as completely against international humanitarian law and, like him, I condemn it.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

Humanitarian organisations have been warning repeatedly that this would happen. A group of us met them last week, and when this conflict started I met Islamic Relief, which is based in my constituency. We now end up here, where we are seeing healthcare being attacked and systematically degraded. We are seeing no safe zones left. We are told of the onset of famine, and that the number of people being killed keeps rising. Will the Minister finally please listen to the calls of Members across this House, of the international communities and of the people working on the ground and call for an immediate ceasefire and unrestricted aid?

[Mr Mitchell]

I have set out several times already today why calling for an immediate ceasefire may make us feel better but is not a practical resolution. That is why—[Interruption.] There is no difference between the analysis that the hon. Lady makes, and the NGOs in her constituency, and my analysis. The question is: what do we do about it? That is why Britain, along with our allies, is continuously, on a 24/7 basis, doing everything practical that we can to get more food and support into Gaza.

Israel and Gaza

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Tuesday 27th February 2024 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

Our determination, which my hon. Friend articulates accurately, is to get that pause to enable the hostages to be released, and to get food in. That is the absolute burden of our activities. As I mentioned to the House, the number of trucks getting into Gaza is patchy. On Sunday, 94 trucks got in, but on 22 February 220 trucks got in, which was the highest number since 17 January. What the House can determine from those figures is that not enough aid is getting in, and we need a substantial increase in that number. That is why the negotiations we are pursuing are so important.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

We are less than two weeks from the start of Ramadan, and the general consensus is that the ground offensive in Rafah would add to an already catastrophic situation, as well as the Israeli operation in Gaza. More than 30,000 people have died. There is nowhere else for civilians in Gaza to go. Will the Government listen and join me, my constituents and many other people, to say that the only way we can stop this is to have an immediate ceasefire?

[Mr Mitchell]

I have explained to the House why calling for an immediate ceasefire will not make it happen. It is the events that go with the purpose of achieving a pause and then a ceasefire that command the full attention of His Majesty’s Government.

Israel and Gaza

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Tuesday 19th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

I thank the hon. Gentleman for his comments. He is right that we are not calling for a ceasefire and hoping that somehow it becomes more permanent. What we are doing is calling for a sustainable ceasefire that allows us to move towards the political track, which will then deliver what he is calling for.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

I thank the hon. Member for Oxford West and Abingdon (Layla Moran). As we all get ready to celebrate Christmas with our families, she will be thinking desperately about her family, and I think about all the families who will not be together this Christmas.

Pauses are not enough to allow the rehabilitation of vital infrastructure. Due to repeated shutdowns of communications and internet services, Gaza is now in danger of becoming an information vacuum. Transparency is absolutely essential for holding military forces to account and preventing further humanitarian atrocities. Will the Minister please update the House on how the UK is working to ensure that the power and communications infrastructure is restored, so that we can get help and clarity for those in desperate need?

[Mr Mitchell]

We are working to get to that point, but we are not there at the moment. We need to do everything we can to reconnect vital infrastructure that has been destroyed. It is not just about people suffering the effects of kinetic activity; it is also about the effect of the lack of food and growing disease. The hon. Lady may rest assured that, in respect of the infrastructure to which she refers, we will do everything we can when we get the opportunity.

Oral Answers to Questions

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Tuesday 12th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Lady will know that there is a specific track to pursue on this, and if she has not already been in touch with the crisis centre at the Foreign Office, that is what she should do immediately.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

Last week I was contacted by Kennington Bethlehem Link, a voluntary group dedicated to working with Israelis and Palestinians. It raised the case of Anas Abu Srour, who was arrested by the Israeli army. This week it was announced that he had been detained for six months in administrative detention, and the reason for his arrest is still unclear. A petition of support has been signed by over 6,000 people in nine days, so will the Minister please ask the Foreign Secretary to work urgently with his Israeli counterpart so that we can find out why he was imprisoned?

[Mr Mitchell]

If the hon. Lady will make available to me the full details of that case—assuming that she has not already told the Foreign Office—I will look into it for her and ensure she gets an answer.

Israel-Hamas War: Diplomacy

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Monday 11th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

I have set out the fact that Britain has the toughest export licences and regulations anywhere in the world. Of course, if the hon. Lady has any evidence of those licences being infracted in some way, she should bring it to the attention of the authorities.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

The Minister will be aware that, as far back as 10 October, the independent UN commission of inquiry said:

“There is already clear evidence that war crimes may have been committed in the latest explosion of violence in Israel and Gaza, and all those who have violated international law and targeted civilians must be held accountable for their crimes.”

As of Saturday, the death toll is more than 17,000 people, of whom nearly 13,000 are women and children, and thousands more are believed to be buried under the rubble. Every passing day is another day of children dying. Like so many of my Vauxhall constituents who email me, it is hard not to feel powerless when we watch the scale of death and destruction day after day. Does the Minister agree that the International Criminal Court should be the jurisdiction that addresses the conduct of all parties in adhering to international law?

[Mr Mitchell]

The Government have made clear what the role and remit of the International Criminal Court is. As the hon. Lady will be aware, the British Government are a strong supporter of the International Criminal Court. The situation that she described only emphasises the requirement—the demand—that we achieve another humanitarian pause and are able to get deeply needed humanitarian supplies into Gaza.

Gaza: Humanitarian Situation

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Monday 4th December 2023 Commons Chamber

[Leo Docherty]

We continue to argue for constraint, restraint and the application of military power according to humanitarian law.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

Jason Lee, Save the Children’s country director for the Occupied Palestinian Territories, has just returned from a five-day trip to Gaza. He writes:

“A young child might not understand what is happening, but they see the destruction around them. They see when their homes, schools and communities are destroyed. They hear everything that is happening around them, the air strikes, the cries for help. And they feel the terror, the insecurity and the helplessness.”

Many right hon. and hon. Members have raised the issue of innocent children, who have no part in what is going on, being killed. We cannot watch while that continues. Does the Minister agree that working towards a definitive ceasefire is the only way to a sustainable peace in the region?

[Leo Docherty]

The hon. Lady makes a painful allusion to the view of Save the Children; a large proportion of our increased aid budget is going to UNICEF to support children who have been affected. We would all like a de-escalation and ceasefire, but while Hamas remain intent on perpetrating another atrocity, like the one on 7 October, it is hard to see how there can be any other response than the military response of Israel defending its sovereignty.

Israel and the Occupied Palestinian Territories

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Tuesday 14th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

My hon. Friend is entirely right. I hope a particularly hot place in hell is reserved for those who murder humanitarian workers who have put themselves in harm’s way unarmed purely to protect the lives and interests of their fellow humanity.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

We have heard this afternoon that, frankly, this short pause is not working—four hours will not achieve anything. The fact that we are seeing Palestinians being forced to leave their homes en masse is quite worrying. Will the Minister condemn the acts of violence and extremism by Israeli settlers in the west bank, call on Israeli authorities to prevent that settler violence, ensure that there is clear accountability for the perpetrators and condemn this extremist rhetoric?

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. Member will have heard what the Prime Minister and other members of the Government have said in condemning settler violence. We will continue to stand up for the rule of law and international humanitarian law on every occasion we are able to do so.

Occupied Palestinian Territories: Humanitarian Situation

Florence Eshalomi Excerpts

Wednesday 8th November 2023 Commons Chamber

[Mr Mitchell]

The hon. and learned Lady is a distinguished lawyer, and she will know that the judgment she is asking the Government to make is not a judgment for Ministers and politicians, but a judgment for lawyers in respect of international law, so I fear that I am not in a position, as a Minister, to give a direct answer to her question.

[Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall) (Lab/Co-op)]

I want to thank the Minister for the way he has conducted himself this afternoon, listening to the wide range of concerns from right hon. and hon. Members. My prayers and thoughts remain with the hostages, who have been kidnapped for over 30 days now. They have to be released safely and urgently.

I have received so many emails from constituents who are really concerned about the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza. I recently met Islamic Relief UK, which is based in my Vauxhall constituency, and it shared with me the harrowing story of one of its aid workers on the ground:

“None of us has proper food, we’re struggling to find water and we have no electricity. Humanitarian assistance is not being allowed into Gaza and I fear people will starve here.”

That is a quote from an Islamic Relief staff member in Gaza who fled south with his family. These calls are real, and these calls are being made now. People are in desperate need of help. People are facing a major crisis. What more will the Minister and this Government do to make sure they are speaking to their Israeli counterparts to ensure that that pause is real and that it comes now, so we can get in urgent assistance and do not see more innocent civilians dying?

[Mr Mitchell]

I think the hon. Lady speaks for the House about the importance of achieving the humanitarian pauses, which have been greatly mentioned over the last hour and a half. I say to her that I know those at Islamic Relief extremely well, and I have visited them in her constituency. They do fantastic work, and we all honour and respect them for that. In her question, she talked about the importance of releasing the hostages and addressing humanitarian concern. Those two things are at the heart of what the House has been discussing today, and I thank her for ending this session on a constructive note.