Recommendation 2

HM Government Accepted

The Government agrees with the recommendation that the UK must redouble its efforts to bring about a ceasefire. The UK is pressing for an urgent ceasefire, the immediate release of the hostages, for aid to enter Gaza at scale and for a path towards a two-state solution. We have been working closely with partners to ensure a strong, coordinated international approach in support of the efforts of the US, Egypt and Qatar to mediate a ceasefire, and will redouble our efforts to do so. This has included working with the US government as one of our closest allies. At the UN Security Council, we have repeatedly emphasised the need for an immediate ceasefire, voting for a Security Council Resolution and then a General Assembly resolution calling for a ceasefire in June. The Prime Minister and former Foreign Secretary have also repeatedly made clear our opposition to the extension of Israel’s operations in Gaza, including the recent decision to extend operations to Gaza City, and called on Israel’s government to change course. On 21 July, the UK coordinated an international statement with 31 other partners delivering the clear message that the war must end now. We also continue to press the Government of Israel to ensure the protection of the Palestinian population in the West Bank, along with their infrastructure. The Government agrees with the Committee’s recommendations on the delivery of humanitarian aid into Gaza. The Government has repeatedly condemned the drip feeding of aid, killing of aid workers, obstacles to the UN and humanitarian organisations operating and the mass casualty incidents at aid sites, including those run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. We have been clear that Israel’s measures for humanitarian aid introduced following the collapse of the ceasefire are endangering civilians and deepening the desperation in Gaza and that we cannot support any aid distribution system that fails to comply with humanitarian principles. Alongside partners, and at the UN Security Council, the UK has led the international response to the current situation. On 19 May 2025, we coordinated a joint statement on behalf of 27 humanitarian partners, highlighting our concerns at Israel’s new aid arrangements and calling on the Government of Israel to lift aid restrictions and enable the UN and its partners to operate effectively. We coordinated further joint statements on 21 July with 31 partners and 12 August with 32 partners calling on Israel to lift restrictions on aid and on international NGOs. Working with European partners, we called meetings of the UN Security Council on 16 July and on 10 August, calling on Israel to lift all restrictions on humanitarian assistance and allow the UN and aid organizations to operate freely and deliver essential supplies safely to those in need. We have also pressed Israel to lift aid restrictions in our meetings and calls with Israeli government ministers and officials. The current and former Foreign Secretaries have spoken regularly to Israeli Foreign Minister Sa’ar, reiterating the importance of facilitating the safe delivery of aid at scale, and condemning civilian deaths at aid sites. We remain committed to supporting the UN and trusted non-governmental partners, who continue to be the most effective and principled channels for delivering life-saving aid. The UK remains one of the largest donors of humanitarian aid to Palestine. Across the financial years of 2023/24 and 2024/25, we provided £139.5m of official development assistance and have committed a further £75m for 2025–26 to provide humanitarian relief to Gaza, the West Bank and Palestinian refugees in the region. This includes substantial funding for UN agencies including UN OCHA, UNRWA and UNFPA. The Government agrees with the Committee’s recommendation to support the evacuation of critically ill children to the UK. The Prime Minister announced at the end of July that the UK would medically evacuate a limited number of critically sick and injured children out of Gaza to receive specialist treatment in NHS hospitals across the UK, where that is the best option for their care. The Government has partnered with the World Health Organization which works on the ground and plays a critical role in supporting medical evacuations from Gaza. The first groups of children and their families have now arrived in the UK. Further patient arrivals are expected later in the Autumn. The UK is also supporting the departure of students from Gaza who have full scholarships at British universities. This includes FCDO-funded Chevening Scholars. To date, 260 individuals have been supported to leave Gaza. 201 of these are critically ill children and their families, and 59 are fully-funded scholarship holders. Recommendation 3