Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has had recent discussions with his Israeli counterpart on reports of airstrikes targeting residential buildings in Gaza.

We continue to monitor the ongoing humanitarian situation in Gaza and welcome the recent ceasefire brokered by Egypt. All countries, including Israel, have a legitimate right to self-defence. The reports of civilian Palestinian casualties, including women and children, are alarming. It is vital that all security actions are proportionate, in line with international humanitarian law, and calibrated to avoid civilian casualties as much as possible. The Foreign Secretary made this clear to Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen when he wrote to him on 10 May.