Rishi Sunak has said the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) must “demonstrate restraint” and make civilian safety a priority in its military operation in the occupied West Bank.
Ten Palestinians have been killed and dozens injured as a result of Israel’s assault on the Jenin refugee camp. What started out as a drone operation in the early hours of Monday quickly descended into a ground assault as hundreds of IDF soldiers moved in.
Street battles between Israeli forces and Palestinian militants continued on Tuesday.
The UK Prime Minister urged all parties to avoid “further escalation”.
His comments came as Tel Aviv was hit by a car ramming and stabbing attack, which left several people injured. A Palestinian man drove a car into a crowded bus stop in the city and stabbed onlookers before being shot dead by an armed member of the public.
“We support Israel’s right to self-defence, we have condemned the recent terrorist attacks,” Mr Sunak told the Commons Liaison Committee. “We would say that the protection of civilians must be prioritised in any military operation and would urge the IDF to demonstrate restraint in its operation and for all parties to avoid further escalation in both the West Bank and Gaza both now and in the days ahead.”
He also called on Israel “to adhere to principles of necessity and proportionality when defending their legitimate security interests”.
Mr Sunak said he was pressuring the Israeli government to reverse its policy of building “illegal” settlements in the West Bank.
“Settlements are illegal under international law and we’ve said that they present an obstacle to peace and threaten the physical viability of a two-state solution,” he said.
“We’ve consistently engaged with Israel and obviously I met President [Benjamin] Netanyahu a little while ago. We’ve repeatedly made clear to Israel that we oppose any settlement expansion and we’ve asked the Israeli government to halt and reverse its policy.”
Earlier, Foreign Office minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan told MPs in the House of Commons the “accelerating cycle of violence in the West Bank risks another bloodshed” and the Conservative government “is doing everything possible to urge de-escalation of this situation”.
The Sunak administration is under pressure from opposition politicians and some senior Conservatives to take action aimed at bringing the fighting to an end.
Israel’s operation in Jenin is its largest military incursion into the occupied West Bank in about 20 years.
The IDF has released photos purporting to show weapons stored in a mosque in the city’s refugee camp.
Labour MP Beth Winter posed an urgent question on the matter in the House of Commons on Tuesday. She said: “The UK currently holds the presidency of the UN Security Council and it is therefore responsible for guiding the response of the Security Council to requests made by the Palestinian Authority.
“So can I please ask, what is the UK government doing in its capacity as president of the UN Security Council?”
She added: “Can the Foreign Secretary say what steps he will take to reveal whether the IDF has made any use of UK’s arms sold to Israel in this attack and will he immediately suspend all arms sales, including surveillance technology, and will he ban collaboration between the UK and Israel’s armed forces and military industries as a result of this horrific attack on civilians?”
Ms Trevelyan said Middle East minister Lord Ahmad “would be discussing the evolving situation with the Israeli ambassador” later on Tuesday.
She said while the UK “will always support Israel’s right to self defence, the protection of civilians and particularly children must always be prioritised.”
Alicia Kearns, Conservative MP and chairwoman of the Foreign Affairs Committee, called on Mr Sunak’s government to make clear “the Israelis must stop the expansion of illegal settlements”, adding: “They agreed to do so at Aqaba.”
Shadow Foreign Office minister Wayne David said the establishment of an independent Palestinian state alongside Israel would provide “the only real solution” to the conflict.
He said the existence and expansion of Israeli settlements in the West Bank were making the option look out of reach.
Ms Trevelyan said the UK had last week sent a co-ordinated message alongside Canada and Australia condemning illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank, adding: “We will continue to work with our friends and allies to make that message clearly heard.”
