Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Minister of State, Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of comments by Iranian Minister of Cultural Heritage General Ezzatolloh Zarghami that he (a) supplied rockets for use against Israel and (b) provided training to Hamas in their underground tunnels.

Iran poses an unacceptable threat to Israel. We have long condemned Iran's destabilising activity throughout the region, including its political, financial, and military support to several militant and proscribed groups, including Hamas, Hizballah and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad. Such activity compromises the region's security, its ability to prosper and further escalates tensions. The Foreign Secretary raised Iran's ongoing support to its destabilising proxies and partners with the Iranian Foreign Minister on 31 December. The UK remains clear that Iran must use its influence with groups in the region to prevent escalation, and that Iran bears responsibility for the actions of groups they have supported over many years.

We continue to work closely with our partners to hold Iran to account, and we currently have over 400 sanctions in place against the Iranian regime. The UK's new sanctions regime came into force on 14 December and is designed to target Iran and its proxies' hostile activity against the interests of the UK and our partners.

Israel has endured the worst terrorist attack in its history at the hands of Hamas. The UK Government will continue to stand with Israel as it faces pressing challenges to its security. We have deployed UK military assets to the region to carry out surveillance and act as a deterrent. On 14 November, the Foreign Secretary also announced targeted sanctions, coordinated with the US, against Hamas leadership (four Hamas leaders and two financiers) to disrupt Hamas operations in Gaza and wherever their leaders base themselves.