Frank Field – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The below Parliamentary question was asked by Frank Field on 2016-09-02.
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent representations he has made to the government of Israel on that government’s resettlement programme and the demolition of Susiya and Umm al-Hiran.
Mr Tobias Ellwood
The village of Susiya is located in the Occupied Palestinian Territories whilst the village of Umm al-Hiran is located within Israel.
Our Embassy in Tel Aviv has repeatedly raised our opposition to demolitions with the Israeli authorities, including our specific concerns about Susiya, and urged them to provide a legal route for Palestinian construction. On 18 August, officials from the British Consulate General in Jerusalem, along with an official from our Embassy in Tel Aviv, visited Susiya again to highlight our serious concern and demonstrate our continuing support for the village. We most recently raised Susiya with Defence Minister Lieberman on 24 August.
The UK has been encouraging the Israeli authorities and Bedouin communities to find a satisfactory solution to Umm al-Hiran, respecting the equality of all of Israel’s citizens in a way which avoids forcible relocations.
