Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment her Department has made of the potential impact of the Board of Peace on Palestinian self determination and statehood.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answers that the Foreign Secretary and I provided on this issue at departmental oral questions on 20 January.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with the government of Israel on its approval of the E1 settlement plan in occupied East Jerusalem.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Tackling illegal settlement expansion and settler violence are vital to protecting a two-state solution.
Israel must stop settlement expansion and crack down on settler violence, which has reached record levels.
Alongside 26 international partners, we have condemned the E1 settlement plan and we condemn the recent steps to further that plan. We urge Israel to listen to the weight of international opinion on this issue, rather than lessen the prospects for long-term peace.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, with reference to his oral statement of 21 July 2025 on Middle East, Official Report, column 595, whether UK made arms components were used in the incident at the Project HOPE health clinic in Deir al Balah.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the Foreign Secretary has said, we utterly condemn the killing of civilians seeking to meet their basic needs. Our assessment of this strike, drawing on the available evidence, including eyewitness reports in the media, is that it was a drone strike. The Government suspended all export licences for IDF drones on 2 September 2024, and we categorically do not export any bombs or ammunition for use in military operations in Gaza.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his US counterpart on trends in the level of political violence in that country.
Answered by Stephen Doughty - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I condemn all forms of political violence in the strongest terms. Our thoughts are with all those affected. The Foreign Secretary speaks often to Secretary Rubio, who knows he has our full support on this issue.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department plans to take steps to commemorate the anniversary of the 2003 Darfur genocide; and what steps he is taking to improve stop the humanitarian situation in Sudan.
Answered by Catherine West
The UK's long-standing policy is that any determination as to whether genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court. There has been no such determination for Darfur. Irrespective of any such determination, it is clear that atrocities have been committed in this conflict, which the UK condemns. The UK is committed to securing accountability for those responsible. The UK is strongly supporting the humanitarian response in Sudan. The Foreign Secretary visited the Chad-Sudan border in January to see first-hand the impact the UK's recent £113 million aid uplift is making, including providing emergency food assistance to nearly 800,000 displaced people. The Foreign Secretary will soon be hosting a conference in London to mark the two-year point in the Sudan conflict, where we aim to make collective progress on improving the humanitarian response.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Israel's decision to ban UNWRA on the humanitarian situation in (a) Gaza and (b) the West Bank.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the Foreign Secretary said on 13 January, Israeli legislation means the United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) faces a cliff edge in its ability to support Palestinian refugees across the West Bank and Gaza. UNRWA plays a vital role in delivering humanitarian assistance in Gaza and enabling the broader international response through its logistics and distribution network. We remain opposed to the legislation, and unequivocally reject attempts to undermine or degrade UNRWA. The Foreign Secretary raised our concerns on 13 January with Foreign Minister Sa'ar, during his visit to the region. The Minister for Development set out our concerns with Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Haskel on 4 December, and the Foreign Secretary's Representative for Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories also raised this with the Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs on 23 January.
Asked by: Shockat Adam (Independent - Leicester South)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Israeli counterpart on the decision to ban UNRWA operations.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
As the Foreign Secretary said on 13 January, Israeli legislation means the United Nations Relief and Work Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) faces a cliff edge in its ability to support Palestinian refugees across the West Bank and Gaza. UNRWA plays a vital role in delivering humanitarian assistance in Gaza and enabling the broader international response through its logistics and distribution network. We remain opposed to the legislation, and unequivocally reject attempts to undermine or degrade UNRWA. The Foreign Secretary raised our concerns on 13 January with Foreign Minister Sa'ar, during his visit to the region. The Minister for Development set out our concerns with Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Haskel on 4 December, and the Foreign Secretary's Representative for Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories also raised this with the Israeli Minister for Strategic Affairs on 23 January.