Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the United Nations Human Rights Council’s resolution of 18 May that the use of force by Israel in Gaza was disproportionate and indiscriminate.

The UK is concerned about the high number of deaths and casualties during protests in Gaza, including the volume of live fire used. The Foreign Secretary, the Minister for the Middle East and North Africa and I have all raised the use of force with Israeli authorities. The Foreign Secretary spoke to both Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Abbas on 16 May, where he encouraged them to call for calm and work to de-escalate the situation. There is an urgent need to establish the facts; the UK continues to fully support the need for an independent and transparent investigation into recent events. We call directly on Israel to carry out a transparent inquiry into the Israeli Defense Forces' conduct at the border fence and to demonstrate how this will achieve a sufficient level of independence.