Richard Burden – 2015 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Richard Burden on 2015-11-05.

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent reports he has received about the threatened demolition of the village of Khan Al Ahmer in the West Bank and the effects of Israeli settlement activity in the vicinity.

Mr Tobias Ellwood

An official from our Consulate-General in Jerusalem visited the village of Khan Al Ahmer on 9 September and held discussions with community leaders. I also visited the village last year. We remain deeply concerned by Israeli proposals to relocate Bedouin population from the E1 area. Officials at our Consulate-General in Jerusalem are monitoring the situation closely and will continue to demonstrate our concern by regularly visiting the Bedouin communities.

The UK’s position on settlements is clear. They are illegal under international law, present an obstacle to peace and take us further away from a two state solution. We will continue to raise our objections to settlements with the Israeli Government. On 10 September, during Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s visit to the UK, the Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary raised with him our concerns about Israel’s approach to a number of issues, including settlement building and the need for a two state solution.