Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has with his Israeli counterpart on the outbreak of covid-19 outbreak in Gaza; and whether he has made representations to that counterpart on importing medical support to the Palestinian territories.

I discussed our concerns about the impact of a COVID-19 outbreak in Gaza with the Israeli Ambassador to the UK on 31 March. Our Embassy in Tel Aviv and the British Consulate-General in Jerusalem are also in regular contact with the Israeli and Palestinian authorities respectively. Both report good cooperation between the two entities in response to COVID-19. UN agencies, the Palestinian Authority and the Israeli Government are working together to ensure that essential medical supplies and staff are able to access Gaza.