Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to support a cessation of military action in the north of Gaza.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Foreign Secretary spoke to his Israeli counterpart most recently on 27 October, and reiterated that Israel must do much more to bring about an end to hostilities and get aid into Gaza. A political resolution has been a priority of this Government since day one. We have continued to use all diplomatic avenues to push for an immediate ceasefire, the release of all hostages, the upholding of international humanitarian law, protection of civilians including a rapid increase of aid into Gaza, respect for the UN mandate in Gaza, greater stability across the West Bank and a pathway to a two-state solution. We welcome news of the resumption of hostage talks in Doha, and we support the efforts of the US, Egyptian and Qatari negotiators.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of Israeli legislation in relation to UNRWA on (a) his Department’s policies and (b) the provision of UK aid to the Occupied Palestinian Territories.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have expressed serious concern at the UNRWA bills that Israel's Knesset has now passed. This legislation risks making UNRWA's essential work for Palestinians impossible, jeopardising the entire international humanitarian response in Gaza and delivery of essential health and education services in the West Bank. The UK and six allies issued a joint statement on 27 October expressing our grave concern and urging Israel to ensure UNRWA can continue its lifesaving work. The Foreign Secretary reiterated this to Israel's Foreign Minister Katz on 27 October. We will continue working with our international partners and through the UN to press Israel to ensure that UNRWA can continue its vital operations.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he plans to develop a new national strategy on atrocity prevention
Answered by Anneliese Dodds - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The FCDO supports a comprehensive approach to mass atrocity prevention. However, we have no plans to develop a new national strategy at this time. Since 2022, the FCDO's conflict directorate has been strengthening monitoring capabilities to identify and escalate atrocity risks before they occur. We will continue to develop our capacity to respond to atrocity risks, drawing on expertise across HMG and beyond, including from civil society, academia and cooperation with bilateral partners and multilateral organisations.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made an assessment of the possibility of arms supplied from the UK to Israel being used to be used to (a) commit and (b) facilitate serious violations of International humanitarian law in (i) the West Bank and (ii) Lebanon.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK's robust export licensing criteria state that the Government will not issue export licences if there is a clear risk that the items might be used to commit or facilitate serious violations of International Humanitarian Law. Following the Government's decision on 2 September to suspend certain arms export licences to Israel for use in Gaza, there are currently no extant licences that we assess are for use in Lebanon or the West Bank, apart from the licences for the F-35 components which were exempted. We are clear that International Humanitarian Law must be upheld, and civilians protected.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will publish risk assessments of the likelihood of atrocity crimes being committed in Gaza and the West Bank that his Department has made in the last 10 months.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
It is our policy that any FCDO monitoring and assessment of atrocity risks is confidential and therefore we have no plans to publish. However, we continue to monitor risks closely and will continue to update the House on the ongoing situation in Gaza. We do not have access to the advice provided to the previous Government.
Asked by: Melanie Ward (Labour - Cowdenbeath and Kirkcaldy)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how many British-registered charities working in Gaza have experienced (a) staff or volunteers being (i) killed and (ii) injured and (b) buildings or other infrastructure being destroyed or damaged in Gaza in the last 10 months; and how many (A) staff have been (1) killed and (2) injured and (B) incidents there have been of buildings being destroyed or damaged in Gaza in the last 10 months, by each registered charity.
Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK Government does not hold this data directly. However, we are extremely concerned about the number of casualties amongst the humanitarian sector community, including our own UK nationals. International Humanitarian Law provides for the protection of non-combatants. Whilst in Israel, the Foreign Secretary pressed Prime Minister Netanyahu to implement improved deconfliction processes to protect aid workers. I will continue to raise with my Israeli counterparts the incidents that affect the delivery of vital humanitarian work.
Israel must take concrete steps to protect civilians and aid workers in accordance with International Humanitarian Law. This includes deconfliction between military and humanitarian operations, and supporting the minimum operating requirements of the UN agencies. The World Central Kitchen (WCK) deaths on 2 April, including the death of three British Nationals, were an appalling example of Israel's failure to provide an effective deconfliction mechanism to keep humanitarian operations safe from military operations.