Gaza: Humanitarian Obligations Debate
Full Debate: Read Full DebateDepartment: Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
John McDonnell
Main Page: John McDonnell (Labour - Hayes and Harlington)Department Debates - View all John McDonnell's debates with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
(1 day, 8 hours ago)
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John McDonnell (Hayes and Harlington) (Lab)
My hon. Friend has mentioned children. Last night I met Dr Mohammed Tahir, the doctor featured in the film “The Mission”. In that film, he is shown operating on children without anaesthesia, with dead children at his feet. Only 10%, at best, of medical supplies are getting through to Gaza at the moment. Can our Government not do more to enforce a greater supply?
Irene Campbell
I thank my right hon. Friend for that intervention; I look forward to hearing the Minister’s response in relation to these points.
As the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs notes,
“UNRWA continues to be banned by Israeli authorities from bringing in food and other supplies into Gaza.”
That further complicates matters, because it is important that aid is delivered by those trained to do so. Humanitarian aid is a specialist area, and organisations with experience cannot simply be replaced by others. We need co-ordination on access to aid to ensure that no single party has a monopoly or veto on what can enter Gaza.
The UK is a leader on the world stage, and British citizens are simply asking that we use our position to influence what needs to be done. I look forward to hearing the Minister’s response and I ask him to use the significant diplomatic and economic leverage that the UK possesses to do as much as possible to allow aid to those desperately in need and to alleviate suffering.