Stephen Doughty

With permission, I would like to make a statement on the humanitarian situation in Gaza and the wider region.  With Gaza entering its fourth winter of conflict, last weekend’s heavy rain and strong winds have made the intolerable humanitarian situation even worse for Palestinian civilians. Like so many others, I was horrified by the scenes. Flooding has damaged displacement sites, tents and buildings, including hospitals and schools. According to our humanitarian partners on the ground, more than 152,000 people have been affected, with over 6,000 shelters destroyed, 17,400 damaged and nearly 4,000 households left without shelter. Three children and their mother were killed when a sand embankment collapsed on their tents. The cumulative impact, as well as the immediate impact, is appalling. For more than three years, families have lost loved ones, homes and livelihoods, and many have had to move again and again in search of safety. Meanwhile, civilian deaths continue, with more than 1,600 killed since the so-called ceasefire alone, and Gazans have been kettled into around 30% of their territory.   The reality on the ground is heartbreaking, yet we knew this was coming. The UN and non-governmental organisations have raised the alarm for months. Donors, including ourselves, geared up for it and put in support for aid agencies ahead of time, but restrictions on access to vital supplies and machinery have hampered preparations for winter. According to the UN, over 150,000 tents and 300,000 tarpaulins that humanitarian partners and donors purchased are outside Gaza, ready to go in, yet the Israeli authorities have prevented these items from entering. They also continue to block timber from entering, leaving no emergency shelter kits available in Gaza. This is shameful. The problem is not simply whether the international community can provide help; it is whether that help can reach the people who need it. I have a very simple and direct message to the Israeli authorities: let the aid in. This is only the first storm of winter, and there will be more. The UN has said that new tents alone will not protect people from flooding. Gaza urgently needs machinery and tools for drainage and rubble removal, and this is unilaterally in the Government of Israel’s control. As the occupying power, there are strict legal obligations that Israel must obey. We have repeatedly pressed it to prepare for winter and to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza, in line with international law. At the UN General Assembly, the UK brought international partners together behind a call to action on humanitarian access and healthcare. Today, again in New York, we will bring together multiple international partners once again to reinforce that pressure.  Our immediate asks of the Government of Israel are clear: open crossing points, starting with Erez in northern Gaza; allow additional days for dual-use items to enter; and reduce the list of those items, so that vital medicines, medical equipment, and materials for tents and shelter can reach the people who need them. I saw with my own eyes items for which I could see no reasonable ground for refusing entry. The Israeli Government must also allow access for journalists, diplomats and Foreign Ministers, so that the world can see the scale of what is happening.  I am shocked by reports overnight that an Israeli airstrike on the Nasser hospital in southern Gaza has killed at least six people. So many healthcare workers and humanitarians have lost their lives and faced peril trying to alleviate suffering in Gaza. I am thinking in particular of those, including the brave British nationals, who lost their lives in the World Central Kitchen attack. In recent months, officials at the British embassy in Tel Aviv have pressed the Israeli authorities to take the action needed to prepare Gaza for winter. On Monday, officials again met those at the Israeli embassy in London to reinforce the urgent need for action. We call on all parties to the conflict to allow aid to enter Gaza and get to the people who need it. I am sorry to say that in recent weeks, the flow of aid and essential goods into Gaza has been repeatedly disrupted. Commercial deliveries were temporarily suspended in September following reports of Hamas taxation. On 3 November, the Israeli authorities closed the Egypt corridor for six days over allegations of smuggling, cutting off an essential lifeline to Gazans. I have been to the Egypt warehouses myself and seen the stockpiles of essential aid waiting to get in. The UN chief for humanitarian affairs, Tom Fletcher, and other international counterparts have said that there is no excuse for this. The law is clear that civilians should get the aid they need and should not be punished, and that that should not be subject to political negotiations. The UK Government will not stand by, but will keep working with our partners to press for the restrictions to be lifted. I am proud that our Government and our support have already made a difference. We provided UNICEF with £14 million this year to support nutrition, child protection, health, water and sanitation, and preparation for winter, but we must do more. Today, I can announce that we are releasing a further £5 million from our bilateral budget to UNICEF, which will be focused on the winter response, including the impact of flooding over the weekend. Overall, UK support will make a tangible difference to the people of Gaza, aiming to provide winter clothing for 100,000 children, tarpaulins for 62,500 people, family tents for 1,250 households and blankets for 150,000 people. Last month, the Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs’ pooled fund, to which the UK is a significant contributor, provided $45 million for winter supplies, and when the flooding hit, OCHA was able to respond quickly and help families in displacement sites. Through our £88 million of humanitarian funding this financial year, we expect to provide healthcare for up to 900,000 people, safe water for 150,000 people, and rehabilitation and prosthetic care for 1,000 children with blast injuries. At the G7 this week, the Foreign Secretary was clear that Israel must ensure humanitarian access, humane treatment and basic welfare for civilians in Gaza. So we are acting, and we will continue to act, to alleviate the suffering. Let me repeat that we recognise Israel’s legitimate security concerns and of course condemn Hamas’s 7 October terrorist attack, the worst antisemitic massacre since the Holocaust. I stood in resolute solidarity with Israelis and Jews at the memorial event and exhibition organised with the Israeli embassy just a few weeks ago. Let me also be clear that the United Kingdom remains committed—fully committed—to resolution 2803 and the 20-point peace plan. We are resolute and clear that Hamas must decommission their weapons, dismantle their terrorist infrastructure and relinquish control of Gaza. Ultimately, we need a lasting answer to this conflict. Our north star remains the two-state solution as the only route to lasting peace, security and prosperity for Israelis and Palestinians. With your permission, Madam Deputy Speaker, let me add that while Gaza is rightly the immediate focus of my statement, it is not the only humanitarian crisis in the region that demands our attention. I want to say something about the appalling situation in Yemen, which is compounding the years of suffering, death and destruction faced by Yemenis. The Houthis’ decision to resume conflict has worsened an already desperate humanitarian situation. Since August, more than 330,000 people have fled their homes, there have been more than 1,000 civilian casualties and hundreds have been killed. The situation is particularly acute in Taiz, where the continued Houthi siege restricts the movement of people, aid and essential goods. Women and children are particularly vulnerable as supplies run low, and healthcare services have been drastically reduced. The recruitment and use of children in the conflict, widespread displacement and food insecurity are causing further suffering. In recent weeks, I have met senior representatives of the Government of Yemen, and listened directly to humanitarians working on the frontline. We cannot turn away, and donors and the world cannot turn away, in the face of such appalling suffering. We need to do more. I am also appalled by the continued detention of UN workers, and the deaths we have seen. I reiterate that international humanitarian law must be upheld by all. We are providing £104 million in humanitarian support to Yemen, including the recently announced £10 million to the UN’s emergency fund. We will continue to work with the Government of Yemen and other partners to protect and support civilians and return to a political process. Finally, I want to update the House on sanctions, which I know are a matter of keen interest. In September, the Foreign Secretary announced further action in relation to Gaza and the west bank, including a new sanctions regime targeting illegal settlement activity. I can confirm that work is under way to prepare that regime, but in recent weeks we have also moved at pace to expand the global human rights sanctions regime to cover serious violations of international humanitarian law, including obstructing the delivery of or access to humanitarian aid. In recent weeks, we have also acted in other contexts. For example, in relation to the appalling situation in Sudan, we have sanctioned 15 senior commanders from the Rapid Support Forces and the Sudanese armed forces for suspected atrocities, including conflict-related sexual violence. We do not comment on future designations under our sanctions regimes—the House knows why—but I want to be clear today that we are prepared to use these expanded powers against those who continue to block the entry of aid into Gaza and other conflict zones anywhere in the world. I commend this statement to the House.