Stephen asks Foreign Secretary to call for ceasefire
Stephen has tabled a Written Question to the Foreign Secretary, Dominic Raab, asking him to call on the Government of Israel to cease its airstrikes on Gaza. Prior to receiving an answer a ceasefire, brokered by Egypt, was announced on 20 May. It came into force at the end of that day.
Two days after the announcement, Stephen received an answer from the Minister for the Middle East, James Cleverly MP. It stated “The UK welcomes the announcement of a ceasefire in Israel and Gaza on 20 May, which is an important step to ending the cycle of violence and loss of civilian life. The UK offers our condolences to the families of those civilians killed. The UK worked actively to urge the parties to work with mediators towards an immediate ceasefire. We fully supported Egyptian, Qatari and UN efforts to that end, working closely with the US. Hamas must now end all attacks on Israel. It is also important for Israel to facilitate rapid humanitarian access in and out of Gaza. As the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary have made clear, this cycle of violence must stop, and every effort must be made to avoid loss of life.”
Speaking afterwards, Stephen said “The ceasefire offers hope to the people of Israel and Palestine that this devastating escalation of violence will come to an end.
“I would now like to see the Government and the international community do all it can to ensure the necessary humanitarian support can access Gaza. I believe we must also make every effort to restart a meaningful peace process as a matter of urgency. If further conflagrations are to be prevented, we need a process that will uphold international law, end the illegal occupation of the Palestinian territories and create a viable Palestinian state alongside a secure Israel.