Select committee: International Development Committee
Conclusion 15
Second Report - Humanitarian situation in Gaza
Published 1 Mar 2024
Paragraph 53
Addressed to Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office
International Development Committee Humanitarian situation in Gaza All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Conclusion (the committee's words)
In its previous report, this Committee welcomed the Government’s introduction of the Office for Conflict, Stabilisation and Mediation (OCSM) with a hub to consider atrocity prevention. However, it seems that this hub has not met its promise. The FCDO should revisit our previous report and look at how to improve the hub, 20 Humanitarian situation in Gaza because it should be forming a central part of the Government’s response in Gaza and it appears not to have the resource to give the leadership across Whitehall that is required.
From: International Development Committee, Second Report - Humanitarian situation in Gaza (HC 110), paragraph 53, 1 March 2024
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 8 May 2024 (deadline 1 May 2024).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government marks most of the Committee's recommendations as "Agree", marks three as "Partially Agree", and says it is "focussed on practical solutions that save lives".
- On land crossings and aid access, it marks the recommendation "Agree" and says it "continue[s] to press Israel" for further changes, welcoming Israel's undertaking to raise aid flows to 500 trucks a day and wanting Israel to fulfil it "as quickly as possible".
- On a reconstruction conference, it marks the recommendation "Partially Agree": it agrees the international community must consider recovery now, but is "not at this stage ready to commit to the UK hosting an international conference".
- On UNRWA, it marks the recommendation "Agree" but makes no commitment to resume funding, saying it "will set out our position on future funding" after "careful consideration" of the final report, UNRWA's response and the ongoing OIOS investigation.
- On international humanitarian law, it "Partially Agree[s]", stating that grave concerns on humanitarian access are "not sufficient to undermine our judgement that Israel is committed to comply with IHL in general".