Wednesday 25th February 2015

(9 years, 9 months ago)

Westminster Hall
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Robert Halfon Portrait Robert Halfon
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I will not, because I have given way twice.

We will not get a Palestinian state until we decide which Palestinian state it is going to be. Is it the one in Gaza, ruled by Hamas, with its terrorist network, its determination to throw every Jew into the sea and its continuing desire to fire missiles indiscriminately at Israeli territory? Is it the one in the west bank, with the more moderate Palestinian Authority?

Yasmin Qureshi Portrait Yasmin Qureshi (Bolton South East) (Lab)
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Will the hon. Gentleman give way?

Robert Halfon Portrait Robert Halfon
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Just out of respect for the hon. Lady, I will briefly give way.

Yasmin Qureshi Portrait Yasmin Qureshi
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I thank the hon. Gentleman for giving way. He talks about the west bank, but we know that more than half a million illegal settlements have been carried out there. As an hon. Member said earlier, even if we really believe in a two-state solution, that is not going to happen, is it?

Robert Halfon Portrait Robert Halfon
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The whole idea of having a negotiation is that there will be land swaps. As I said, Israel withdrew from Gaza, the biggest settlement of all, and all that happened was 19,000 missiles were fired indiscriminately on to Israeli territory.