Iqbal Mohamed

It is a pleasure to serve under your chairship, Ms McVey. The e-petition is focused on our humanitarian obligations in Gaza. Over 600 people from my constituency signed it, along with over 200,000 people from across our nation. As the hon. Member for North Ayrshire and Arran (Irene Campbell) mentioned, there is an immediate need for aid to be delivered, with or without Israeli support. That is the key point. Since the ceasefire began, the situation has remained deeply unstable and deadly. The only positive that has come from the ceasefire is the release of the living hostages and the return of the remains of those who were killed. But leaving that positive aside, Israel has continued with impunity its relentless attack, murder and starvation of women, children and men. In the last 44 days, since the ceasefire began on 10 October, an estimated 497 Israeli violations have been documented. Around 342 Palestinians have been slaughtered, and nearly 875 injured—most of them women, children and the elderly. The violations include 140 incidents of direct gunfire at civilians and homes; 220-plus bombardments by air, land and artillery; 21 ground incursions beyond the agreed yellow line; 100 demolitions of homes and civilian structures—some of the few that were remaining; and the continued blockade of humanitarian aid, which is being used as a weapon of genocide. The need for aid—just to meet basic needs—prior to 7 October 2023 and the current conflict, was 500 trucks per day going into Gaza. For decades the majority of that aid was distributed across Gaza by UNRWA. Throughout 2024 and early 2025, only an average of between 36 and 100 trucks of aid a day entered Gaza.