Many constituents have contacted me about the desperate situation in Gaza.

This was discussed in the House of Commons today and I have pasted below what the minister Hamish Falconer told MPs:

“The situation in northern Gaza is dire. The UK condemns Israel’s restrictions on aid in the strongest terms. The scale of human suffering is unimaginable. We have been clear that this is a man-made crisis and Israel must act immediately to address it.

The need for humanitarian assistance to reach Gaza is greater than ever before. Close to 46,000 people have now been killed. All of Gaza’s population is reported to face the risk of famine. Air strikes within the designated humanitarian zone show there are no safe spaces left for civilians. Reports of up to eight children having died from the cold weather are unconscionable.

It is unacceptable that many medical facilities are no longer in use or are inaccessible to humanitarian organisations, and we remain deeply concerned by reports of medics being killed or injured. I have raised this, and will continue to raise this, with both the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister and Israel’s ambassador to the United Kingdom. I have also specifically raised the detention of Kamal Adwan Hospital director Dr Hussam Abu Safiya with both the Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister and Israel’s ambassador to the UK. We urge Israel to urgently clarify the reasons for his detention, as well as for the detention of paediatrician Mohammed Hamouda and all the other health workers detained in Gaza.

The UK is doing all we can to alleviate this suffering. We have provided £112 million for the Occupied Palestinian Territories this financial year, including £41 million for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, providing vital services to civilians in Gaza and the west bank, and to Palestinians across the region, delivered through partner agencies.

The UK is also supporting the provision of essential healthcare to civilians in Gaza, including support to UK-Med for operating its field hospitals, and we have provided £1 million to the Egyptian Ministry of Health to support medically evacuated Palestinians from Gaza.

The Foreign Secretary, working with his French and German counterparts, wrote to the Government of Israel in November to press them to ensure adequate preparations for winter.

Make no mistake: in lockstep with our partners, we are continuing to exert pressure to make sure that northern Gaza is not cut off from the south, that Gazans are not forcibly transferred from or within Gaza, and that there is no reduction in the territory of the Gaza strip.

We need a ceasefire, we need hostages to be released, we need much more aid into Gaza, and we need civilians to be protected.”

I agree with every word of this bleak assessment.

On the issue of arms sales, on the 2nd September the Government announced the outcome of its review which was that there was a clear risk that military exports to Israel that were used for military operations in Gaza might result in serious violations of international humanitarian law. As a result, we suspended approximately 30 licences for exports to Israel for items that could be used in the current conflict. This included components for fighter aircraft, parts for unmanned aerial vehicles naval systems and targeting equipment.

The ban covers all arms exports for use in the current conflict in Gaza except for key components of the F-35 which is part of an international collaborative programme that plays an important role in NATO and in our support for the defence of Ukraine. The UK Government had set out why it is not possible to suspend all F-35 licences without undermining the global supply chain that is crucial for the security of the UK and our allies.

As far as the International Court of Justice is concerned, the UK Government supports it and respect its independence.

We all want this horror to end. The only way forward is through a ceasefire, and while we can and will do everything that we can to press for one, the only people who can in the end bring this about are the Israelis and Hamas through negotiations.

Best wishes

Rt Hon Hilary Benn
MP for Leeds South
Secretary of State for Northern Ireland