Gareth Thomas

“Like others, I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Sheffield Central (Abtisam Mohamed) on securing this this debate. Like her, I support a complete legal ban on all British trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied west bank. These settlements are illegal under international law, and Britain should not permit trade that helps to sustain or profit from activity that is clearly unlawful under international law. We have both a legal and a moral obligation to act. The settlements form part of a broader pattern of land confiscation, home demolitions, movement restrictions, settler violence and the denial of basic human rights. These policies are being actively encouraged by the Netanyahu Government and are intended, at least in part, to extinguish any realistic prospect of a future Palestinian state. If we genuinely support a two-state solution, want to respect our obligations under international law and recognise our common humanity, then Britain must act. Palestinian children in the west bank are among those suffering most from the escalating levels of settler violence. According to UNICEF, 70 Palestinian children were killed in the west bank between January last year and May this year, which is roughly one child every week. The wider trend is equally alarming. According to the UN Office for the Co-ordination of Humanitarian Affairs, March this year saw the highest number of Palestinians injured in settler attacks for two decades. Illegal settlements now physically occupy nearly 10% of the west bank, while settlement regional councils exercise control over approximately 40% of the territory. This has dramatically reduced the land available for Palestinian housing, infrastructure and economic development. The World Bank has repeatedly highlighted how restrictions on Palestinian access to land undermine economic growth and development. Without meaningful action to curb settlement expansion, poverty will deepen in the west bank, and the prospects for peace will recede further still. Large areas of Palestinian agricultural land have been confiscated for the direct benefit of settlers. It is clear that this is not accidental or incidental, but a deliberate policy that enjoys the active support of the Israeli Government. Last September, Prime Minister Netanyahu stated, “there will be no Palestinian state”, while advancing the E1 settlement expansion plan, which would effectively split the west bank in two. In its 2024 advisory opinion, the International Court of Justice concluded that Israel’s policies and practices in the Occupied Palestinian Territories are contrary to international law and stated that other countries, clearly including us, have obligations not to support or assist in the maintenance of the unlawful situation created by the settlements. A comprehensive ban on settlement trade would therefore be a practical and necessary step towards meeting those obligations and challenging continued settlement expansion.”