Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions he has held with his Israeli counterparts on lifting restrictions on international journalists to enable them to report on the situation in Gaza.

The Foreign Secretary and I have both paid tribute to journalists risking their lives to report in Gaza. Journalists covering conflicts are afforded protection under humanitarian law. The Media have a right to report freely and we urge all parties to permit journalists to carry out their crucial role. The UK remains committed to Media Freedom and to championing democracy and human rights around the world. Independent media is essential to a functioning society. There must be safe access for journalists to conflict situations in order to independently cover events.