Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon on 24 September (HL8095), what support they plan to give to the Palestinian Authority to enable the continued provision of education for Palestinian children whose school buildings have been demolished by the Israel Defence Force in Area C of the West Bank.

In all but the most exceptional of circumstances demolitions are contrary to International Humanitarian Law. The practice of demolitions (and confiscations) causes unnecessary suffering to ordinary Palestinians and is harmful to the peace process. The UK does not undertake a specific assessment of the impact of demolitions on the education of Palestinian children, but the UK does support education in the OPTs.

UK Aid to the Palestinian Authority (PA) helps to ensure it can deliver essential services, including the provision of education by contributing to the salaries of carefully vetted teachers and education workers in the West Bank.