Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent discussions she has had with (a) her Israeli counterpart, (b) the Commonwealth War Graves Commission and (c) the Royal British Legion on the bulldozing of parts of The Gaza War Cemetery in al-Tuffah.

The Gaza War Cemetery in al-Tuffah holds the remains of more than 3,000 men who gave their lives in the First and Second World Wars, the majority from the United Kingdom, but many also from Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand, Poland, South Africa and other countries. As I said in the General Debate on 5 February, that includes Private William Jordan and Private Wilfrid Ogden, from my own constituency, who died during the Battles for Gaza in 1917.

There is justifiable distress in our country and elsewhere at the reports that the cemetery has been damaged by Israeli bulldozers, and we also deplore the reports that the cemetery has been used for Hamas military operations. Brave servicemen laid to rest overseas should never have had their graves defiled in this way. Alongside our international partners, we are raising our concerns about this with the Israeli authorities, and we will work with the Commonwealth War Graves Commission to ensure that - when the circumstances allow - they are able to go to Gaza, assess what damage has been done, and do what is necessary to repair that damage.