Thank you for taking the time to contact me.
I have been closely following recent events in Israel and the Gaza Strip and I welcome news of a ceasefire.
There is no justification for the firing of over 1,468 rockets towards Israel by the Iran-backed Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group in the Gaza Strip since Tuesday 9th May. These attacks harm both Israeli and Palestinian civilians, with around 290 rockets falling short of their intended targets and exploding in Gaza.
The PIJ terror group fires rockets from civilian areas in Gaza, towards civilian areas in Israel. Israel has been targeting terrorists who were directly responsible for planning recent attacks and were in the process of coordinating future acts of terror.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have responded to continued PIJ rocket fire by attacking 700 terror targets inside the Gaza Strip including senior commanders, rocket launch sites, weapons manufacturing facilities, an attack tunnel and other military targets.
One Israeli civilian and one Gazan resident have been killed in PIJ rocket attacks, and 33 Palestinians have reportedly been killed in Israeli airstrikes against PIJ terror targets and in explosions caused by misfired PIJ rockets – including at least 21 militants. The loss of civilian lives is deeply regrettable in all circumstances. The IDF said that three children were among at least four civilians killed from PIJ rockets falling short in the Gaza Strip.
On Tuesday 9th May, the IDF launched ‘Operation Shield and Arrow’, targeting three senior leaders of the Iran-backed PIJ terror group in Gaza who were killed in coordinated airstrikes as well as attacking military compounds and sites used to produce weapons. The three leaders were believed to be directly responsible for planning recent and future terror attacks including rocket launches towards Israel and follow over 100 rockets being fired towards Israel in a 24-hour period on 2-3rd May.
Security experts assess that the dramatic increase in violence has deliberately been driven by Iran-linked terror entities in a concerted effort to destabilise the region – this has included the supply of finance and weapons to facilitate terrorism.
Those who seek to downplay the existential threats and terrorism that Israel faces and espouse the false narrative that Israel’s defensive actions are motiveless do little to further the cause of peace.
Israel is a long-term ally of the UK and shares many mutual interests, including close intelligence-sharing and military cooperation. As a country renowned for its high-tech expertise, the UK benefits from Israeli military technology. Israeli technology that the UK uses includes battlefield medical technology, techniques for dealing with suicide bombers, and technology to counter remotely-detonated terrorist bombs.
These technologies have protected and continue to protect the lives of many British soldiers. An arms embargo on Israel and the wider boycott campaign therefore stands to be harmful for our armed forces, damaging for UK-Israel bilateral relations, and counterproductive to the peace process.
For these reasons, I will not be supporting an arms embargo against Israel. I will continue to monitor these developments.
Ultimately, the only way to resolve these issues is to secure a peace deal between Israel and the Palestinians. The Abraham Accords signed between Israel and her Gulf partners present an important opportunity to reinvigorate the Israeli-Palestinian peace process. I will continue to urge the UK Government to support efforts to restart direct negotiations to achieve a lasting peace, and promote peacebuilding initiatives including the International Fund for Israeli-Palestinian Peace.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.
Craig Whittaker MP
May 2023