West Bank: Forced Displacement Debate
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Sarah Smith
Main Page: Sarah Smith (Labour - Hyndburn)Department Debates - View all Sarah Smith's debates with the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
(2 days, 1 hour ago)
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Tahir Ali (Birmingham Hall Green and Moseley) (Lab)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Mr Turner. I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow North (Martin Rhodes) for securing this important debate.
The international community has been failing Palestinians for many months. That has been demonstrated during the last 21 months, and it has been heart-wrenching. At least 62,000 Palestinians are now dead. Malnutrition has reached alarming levels, as civilians are constantly deprived of food, water and humanitarian aid because of the Israeli blockade. The Israeli authorities have now ramped up home demolitions in the west bank and built more illegal settlements, displacing more and more Palestinians.
The surge in settler violence by Israeli authorities has left civilians in the west bank subject to daily attacks and harassment, and unable to access the services they desperately need to survive. The Palestinians who have lived in these areas have lived there for decades. It is their home. Communities are being uprooted, families are being stripped of their homes and lives are being shattered as we speak.
Sarah Smith (Hyndburn) (Lab)
Does my hon. Friend agree that it is not good enough that children are growing up without the basics that they should expect? They are no longer able to access education, many have lost their lives, access to water is being restricted and there is absolute devastation. We must stand up against that and do all we can to support the Palestinian people.
Tahir Ali
I could not agree more.
The actions of Israel’s forces constitute forcible transfer, which is a violation of yet another international law by Israel. What more does Israel need to do before the United Kingdom decides to step up and take real action? That question is being asked not only in this House but throughout the country. Statements and warnings are no longer good enough. A joint statement with France and Canada on 19 May said that “concrete actions” will be taken if Israel does not back off, but we are yet to see what those concrete actions are. Homes have been demolished, hospitals have been destroyed, schools have been obliterated and Israel has forcibly displaced more than 6,000 Palestinians between October 2023 and May 2025. The Government must take all possible action to stop the constant and ongoing suffering.
Today, the violence is even worse than before, and tensions between Israel and Iran have escalated over the past couple of weeks, putting the region on the brink of a bloody war. A weakened Iran is desperate and dangerous, and an emboldened Netanyahu is also desperate and dangerous. Fighting fire with fire will be disastrous for the Palestinians and will put the whole region at risk of further harm.
The ceasefire was ineffective and sanctions have proved to be less than threatening. Now more than ever, it is time that the Government realised that the only way towards true and lasting peace is to end any complicity, to work towards a long-lasting two-state solution and to recognise the sovereign state of Palestine.