Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether he has made recent representations to his Israeli counterpart on its military strategy in Gaza.

The Foreign Secretary continues to engage regularly with his Israeli counterparts. Following the release of US-Israeli hostage Edan Alexander on 12 May, the Foreign Secretary urged Israeli Foreign Minister Sa'ar of the need for an end to the aid blockade and for all parties to push towards an immediate ceasefire and the release of all hostages who remain in Gaza. The UK Government totally opposes an expansion of Israel's military operations in Gaza and have consistently urged the Israeli Government that a permanent ceasefire remains the only way to return all the remaining hostages and ensure Hamas has no future role in Gaza. On 20 May, the Foreign Secretary announced that we have suspended negotiations with the Israeli government on a new free trade agreement, decided to review cooperation with them under the 2030 Bilateral Roadmap, and imposed further sanctions on settlers.