Debates between Andrew Mitchell and Nadia Whittome during the 2019-2024 Parliament

War in Gaza

Debate between Andrew Mitchell and Nadia Whittome
Tuesday 7th May 2024

(7 months, 2 weeks ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Mitchell Portrait Mr Mitchell
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The hon. Member uses lurid language, and he should recognise what the Government are seeking to do, together with our allies in the region and internationally, and support the Government in that endeavour.

Nadia Whittome Portrait Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East) (Lab)
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I want the Deputy Foreign Secretary to imagine that he was in Rafah. If bombs were being dropped on his family and there was no safe place for them to go, I am sure that he would want Governments such as ours to use every available lever to stop the attacks and that he would rightly expect to receive protection. So why is it different for Palestinians? What will it take for this Government to call for an immediate ceasefire, stop arms sales to Israel and hold Netanyahu to account for his war crimes?

Andrew Mitchell Portrait Mr Mitchell
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The hon. Member is right to set out the jeopardy of the families that she describes in Rafah. That is why, on so many different fronts, the Government, along with their allies, are trying to bring about a resolution to these matters. The fact that so far we have not been fully successful in that endeavour should not deter us from continuing to try to do the right thing in those respects.

Occupied Palestinian Territories: Humanitarian Situation

Debate between Andrew Mitchell and Nadia Whittome
Wednesday 8th November 2023

(1 year, 1 month ago)

Commons Chamber
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Andrew Mitchell Portrait Mr Mitchell
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My hon. Friend is right and knows a great deal about these issues. He is right about the atrocities committed on 7 October by Hamas. This was a pogrom. It was the worst loss of Jewish life at any time in one day since the Holocaust and since 1945. One reason why the Rafah crossing is so difficult is precisely because of the circumstances that he described, with the misuse of the rules by injured Hamas terrorists.

Nadia Whittome Portrait Nadia Whittome (Nottingham East) (Lab)
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According to Gaza’s Ministry of Health, more than 10,000 people have been killed by Israeli forces in the past month—that is one of every 200 residents of Gaza. That does not include everyone who may have died due to lack of clean water or the collapse of the healthcare system after fuel was cut off. How many more people must die before the Government join the UN Secretary-General, the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, Amnesty International, Doctors Without Borders, Save the Children, Oxfam and the UN General Assembly in calling for an immediate ceasefire?

Andrew Mitchell Portrait Mr Mitchell
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Once again, the hon. Lady will have heard the views of spokespeople on both Front Benches on the issue of a ceasefire, but her comments underline the importance now of trying to achieve these humanitarian pauses, so that help and succour can be brought to those who are suffering.