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 implications for his policies of the UK's obligation under Article 1 of the Genocide Convention to prevent genocide in Gaza.

The UK government's long-standing policy is that any formal determination of genocide should be based on the judgment of a competent national or international court. The Foreign Secretary spoke to his Israeli counterpart on 27 October, and reiterated that Israel must do much more to bring about an end to hostilities and get aid into Gaza. 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 and greater stability across the West Bank.