The petition of the residents of the constituency of Linlithgow and East Falkirk,
Declares that the attacks by Hamas on Israel on 7th October 2023 were acts of terror, and unequivocally condemns the taking of hostages and the loss of innocent lives in those attacks; condemns the disproportionate response of the Israel Defence Forces, including acts which the International Court of Justice have said are plausibly genocide; mourns the growing death toll of women, men and children; further that the petitioners declare for the urgent release of all hostages and an end to the siege of Gaza to allow vital supplies of food, fuel, medicine and water to reach the civilian population; and notes the calls by the United Nations for an immediate ceasefire on all sides of the conflict and the global consensus in support of a two-state solution.
The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to join with others in the international community in urgently pressing all parties to agree to an immediate ceasefire, so that the process of rebuilding and finding a lasting peace with a two-state solution can commence.
And the petitioners remain, etc. —[Presented by Martyn Day, Official Report, 21 February 2024; Vol. 745, c. 811.]
[P002917]
Observations from the Minister of State for the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon:
We want the fighting to stop now. An agreement will allow for vital life-saving aid to be delivered to Gaza, hostages to be released and progress made towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire.
Israel suffered the worst terror attack in its history at the hands of Hamas.
Palestinian civilians are facing a dire, devastating and growing humanitarian crisis in Gaza.
We want the fighting to stop now. An agreement will allow for vital life-saving aid to be delivered to Gaza and get hostages out. It will also allow for progress towards a sustainable, permanent ceasefire, without a return to destruction, fighting and loss of life.
Vital elements for a lasting peace include the release of all hostages; the formation of a new Palestinian Government for the west bank and Gaza, accompanied by an international support package; removing Hamas’s capacity to launch attacks against Israel; Hamas no longer being in charge of Gaza; and a political horizon which provides a credible and irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution.
The Prime Minister, Foreign Secretary and Minister of State for the Middle East have reiterated these points in their contacts with Prime Minister Netanyahu and other senior Israeli political leaders, as well as with leaders in Qatar, Jordan, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Lebanon in recent weeks.
We need to see an end to civilian casualties and a robust deconfliction mechanism. All parties must act within international humanitarian law (IHL). Israel must limit its operations to military targets and avoid harming civilians and destroying homes.
We respect the role and independence of the ICJ. ICJ provisional measures are binding on the parties.
Our view is that Israel’s actions in Gaza cannot be described as a genocide, but we also remain clear that formal determination of genocide should be based upon the judgement of a competent court.
The Court’s call for the immediate release of hostages and the need to get more aid into Gaza is a position we have long advocated.
Palestinians are facing a devastating and shocking humanitarian crisis. We trebled our aid commitment this financial year and we are doing everything we can to get more aid in and open more crossings. The UK and our partners are stepping up our efforts to get aid in as quickly as possible by land, sea and air.
The UK is providing £60 million in humanitarian assistance to support partners including the British Red Cross, UNICEF, the UN World Food Programme (WFP) and Egyptian Red Crescent Society (ERCS) to respond to critical food, fuel, water, health, shelter and security needs in Gaza.
Israel must also take immediate steps, working with other partners including the UN and Egypt, to significantly increase the flow of aid into Gaza, opening more routes into Gaza and restoring and sustaining water, fuel and electricity. This must happen to prevent suffering and the projected starvation of civilians, particularly in northern Gaza.
The Foreign Secretary has appointed his Representative for Humanitarian Affairs in the Occupied Palestinian Territories, who is based in the region and is working intensively to address the blockages preventing more aid reaching Gaza.
We must give the people of the west bank and Gaza the political perspective of a credible route to a Palestinian state and a new future, and it needs to be irreversible.
This is not entirely in our gift, but Britain and our partners can help by confirming our commitment to a sovereign, viable Palestine, and our focus for its composition.
Crucially, we must state our clear intention to grant Palestine recognition, including at the United Nations. That cannot come at the start of the process, but it does not have to be the very end of the process.
We support a two-state solution that guarantees security and stability for both the Israeli and Palestinian people.