Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of the number of Israeli strikes on Lebanon since 27 November 2024.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer given on 20 November to Question 91653.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the report of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, entitled Database of all business enterprises involved in the activities detailed in paragraph 96 of the report of the independent international fact-finding mission to investigate the implications of the Israeli settlements on the civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights of the Palestinian people throughout the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem, published on 26 September 2025.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
Our clear position is that Israeli settlements are illegal under international law. We are aware of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) database but do not comment on individual businesses.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what discussions she has had with her Israeli counterpart on the role of the Israeli Defence Force in allowing adequate aid to enter Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon. Member to the responses I gave during the Urgent Question debate on Gaza in the House of Commons on 29 October.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of trends in the levels of aid being allowed into Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon. Member to the responses I gave during the Urgent Question debate on Gaza in the House of Commons on 29 October.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential implications for her policies of reports of the torture of Palestinian detainees in Israeli detention.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
I refer the Hon Member to the answer provided on 6 August 2025 to Question 58600.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking with international partners to end the conflict in Sudan.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The conflict in Sudan, now into its third year, remains a priority for the UK and the Foreign Secretary. In the months following the April London Sudan Conference UK Ministers and the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) officials have been working to sustain momentum and ensure Sudan remains in the spotlight. Our efforts have included joining the EU-convened Consultative Group on Sudan in June, alongside key partners, to progress shared aims on ending the violence and improving humanitarian access. In the United Nations Security Council (UNSC), where the UK is penholder on Sudan, we have consistently called for an end to the fighting, the protection of civilians, and unimpeded humanitarian access. On 13 August, with African partners and Guyana, the UK led a UNSC press statement calling for respect of international law and rejecting moves to form parallel governments, which will only prolong the conflict. We will continue to use all diplomatic levers working in concert with international partners to encourage the warring parties to return to the negotiating table and commit to a meaningful, sustainable ceasefire in Sudan.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support victims of sexual (a) violence and (b) torture in Sudan.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK is a major humanitarian donor to Sudan with £120 million in life-saving aid budgeted this financial year in addition to £235 million allocated in 24/25. The UK's funding to Sudan delivers a range of critical support including protection, prevention, and care services to women and girls in response to rising gender-based and conflict-related sexual violence (CRSV). This year, the UK is also supporting the deployment of a specialist sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) investigator to the UN Fact-Finding Mission (FFM) in Sudan, delivered through our implementing partner UN Women. This contribution ensures expert input on SGBV to strengthen accountability for conflict-related sexual violence in Sudan. At the UN, the UK has led efforts to spotlight CRSV and other atrocities, including ten Security Council press statements and the renewal of the FFM's mandate.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what recent steps his Department has taken to identify potential UK links to the business interests of the (a) Rapid Support Forces and (b) Sudanese Armed Forces.
Answered by Chris Elmore - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK maintains robust corporate transparency measures, and we monitor this on an ongoing basis. Since the outbreak of conflict in April 2023, the UK has frozen the assets of nine commercial entities linked to the parties involved in the conflict: five entities linked with the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), and four entities linked with the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF). These sanctions were designed to press the parties to engage in a sustained and meaningful peace process, allow humanitarian access and to commit to a permanent cessation of hostilities. We do not speculate on future designations as doing so would undermine their effectiveness.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether his Department has made any (a) formal or (b) informal assessment of the potential risk of genocide in Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's long-standing policy is that any formal determination as to whether genocide has occurred is a matter for a competent national or international court, rather than for governments or non-judicial bodies. It should be decided after consideration of all the evidence available in the context of a credible judicial process.
Asked by: Marsha De Cordova (Labour - Battersea)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will have discussions with the Israeli government on the bombing of the European Hospital in Khan Younis on 13 May 2025.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The recent attacks on the European Hospital in Khan Younis are deeply concerning. As the Foreign Secretary outlined in his statement on the 20th of May, Israel has repeatedly struck hospitals, and these have rendered the European hospital non-functional. In March, the UK, France and Germany called on Israel to do more to prevent harm to medical personnel and premises in the course of their military operations.
Amid Israel's expanded military operations, the healthcare system in Gaza is now on the brink of collapse. We remain gravely concerned by the lack of adequate medical care in Gaza as nearly all hospitals are damaged or partly destroyed according to the World Health Organization.
My officials and I are in regular dialogue with our Israeli counterparts on the protection of healthcare facilities in Gaza. We will continue to make both public and private representations to the Government of Israel to protect healthcare staff and facilities.