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 implications for his policies of the International Court of Justice Advisory Opinion on the legal consequences arising from the policies and practices of Israel in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, including East Jerusalem.

Answered by Hamish Falconer - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)

The UK is fully committed to international law and fully respects the independence of the International Court of Justice. We continue to consider the Court’s Advisory Opinion carefully. We do not disagree with the central findings of the Court’s Advisory Opinion. We are of the clear view that Israel should bring an end to its presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territories as rapidly as possible – but we are clear that every effort must be made to create the conditions for negotiations towards the two-state solution. Our commitment to a two-state solution is unwavering. The UK abstained on the UN General Assembly resolution in September because it did not provide sufficient clarity to advance a negotiated two-state solution.