Middle East

Lord Callanan Excerpts

Wednesday 10th June 2026 Lords Chamber

I commend this Statement to the House”.

[Lord Callanan (Con)]

My Lords, I first thank the Minister for the opportunity to ask questions on this important Statement.

The situation in the Middle East continues to cause global instability, and families here in the UK are feeling the impact at the petrol pump and in the shops. We all have an interest in securing stability in the region, and we should all hope that ceasefires eventually lead to lasting peace.

In recent days, we have seen a significant increase in tensions following the Iranian regime’s use of ballistic missiles in an attack on Israel. I was grateful to the noble Baroness, Lady Chapman of Darlington, for her confirmation that Israel has the right to defend itself. When Israel faces terrorist attacks from Hamas and Hezbollah, when the Iranian regime fires ballistic missiles at Israel, we must all, in my view, be united on Israel’s right to self-defence.

We must all recognise that Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism, both internationally and, sadly, here in the UK. This House voted three times in the last Session to proscribe the IRGC as a terrorist organisation, and Ministers now tell us that this is something the Government are committed to and that it will happen as soon as Ministers can. Will the Minister update the House on the Government’s planned timescale for proscription?

Iran also continues to obstruct shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, and the regime has murdered its own citizens in droves and refuses to end its nuclear weapons programme. Can the Minister please take this opportunity to reassure the House that urgent work is ongoing with our US and EU partners to secure the safe passage of shipping through the strait, and can he say what work is being done to ensure that Iran eventually ends its nuclear programme? Noble Lords across the House, including on the Government Benches, will agree with us when we say that Iran must never have a nuclear weapon.

Turning to Gaza and the West Bank, my right honourable friend Dame Priti Patel was right when she said in the other place:

“We all want to see an end to violence and conflict in the West Bank and in Gaza”.—[Official Report, Commons, 9/6/26; col. 164.]


There remain concerns about the delivery of aid which urgently need to be resolved, and we support all efforts to secure peace.

In that context, we know that Hamas must be disarmed and it must have no role in the future Government of Gaza or in the West Bank. Concerningly, however, Hamas is still a threat, and it is still powerful in Gaza. I would be grateful if the Minister gave the House a sense of the Government’s reaction to the news yesterday that the United States Agency for International Development has referred 101 current or former UNRWA staff members to the US State Department over their affiliation with Hamas, and in some cases, their involvement in the 7 October attacks themselves.

We believe that it would of course be preferable for the Lebanese Government to disarm Hezbollah. The questions my right honourable friend the shadow Foreign Secretary asked in the other place about the support the Government are giving to Lebanon went unanswered. Can the Minister say whether the Government have plans to go beyond the support we are already giving to the Lebanese armed forces, and to help them contribute to the disarmament and disbandment of Hezbollah?