Israel and Palestine: West Bank
House of Lords

Baroness Tonge (Liberal Democrat)

To ask Her Majesty's Government what is their assessment of reports of attacks on Palestinians by settlers from Itamar in the West Bank, and the alleged involvement of the military; and whether they will make representations to the Government of Israel about the use of legal sanctions to deter further attacks.

Lord Howell of Guildford (Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office; Conservative)

We are aware of reports of attacks on Palestinians by settlers from Itamar in the West Bank.

We have serious concerns about the increase in violence by extremist Israeli settlers against ordinary Palestinians and Palestinian property which we have raised with the Israeli Government on a number of occasions. The Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my right honourable friend the Member for Richmond (Yorks) (Mr Hague) joined other European Union (EU) Foreign Ministers in expressing "deep concern regarding settler extremism and incitement by settlers" and condemning "continuous settler violence and deliberate provocations against Palestinian civilians" in the EU Foreign Affairs Council conclusions of May 2012. The Foreign Affairs Council called on the Israeli Government to bring the perpetrators to justice and to comply with its obligations under international law.

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my honourable friend Mr Burt issued a statement on 22 June condemning recent acts of settler violence, including an incident in which a mosque in the West Bank town of Jaba was vandalised, and calling on the Israeli authorities to ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice. Our ambassador to Israel reinforced this message with Attorney General Weinstein on 7 July.