Israel: E1 Zone Expansion Debate
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Richard Foord
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Israel: E1 Zone Expansion
Richard Foord Excerpts(1 month ago)
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Mr Falconer
As I said, questions of justice and accountability are foremost in our mind. We raise them with the Israeli Government regularly, particularly in relation to cases that involve British nationals. We are still awaiting justice and accountability for the World Central Kitchen incident, which killed a number of British aid workers.
I know of so many stories like the one my hon. Friend refers to. I remember visiting Ramallah before I was a Minister; children had been killed on the streets as we drove in to see the Palestinian Authority. There are far, far too many such cases, and we continue to make that point with force, both to the Israelis and in multilateral settings.
Richard Foord (Honiton and Sidmouth) (LD)
In June last year, the UK sanctioned Israeli far-right Minister Bezalel Smotrich for inciting violence against Palestinian communities. In recent weeks, Smotrich has issued an order to displace the Palestinian Bedouin community. The UK position on sanctions against Smotrich was part of a joint statement last year with Australia, New Zealand, Norway and Canada. What talks have the Government had with those same partners about further united sanctions against other Israeli Ministers?
Mr Falconer
For obvious reasons, I will not disclose the full details of diplomatic talks, but I am sure the hon. Gentleman can see the number of things that we have done jointly, including the E1 statement that I referred to last month. We think we have more impact and influence when we work in concert with our friends, and that is what we will always seek to do.