I spoke during a ministerial statement on Israel’s decision to deny two British MPs entry to the West Bank. My colleagues Yuan Yang and Abitsam Mohamed were blocked from entering after questioning by the Israeli authorities and eventually deported. They had intended to visit a range of projects run by humanitarian and development organisations.

Since it commenced its war on Gaza, Israel has studiously prevented journalists and foreign observers from entering the territory. It is shameful but perhaps not surprising that Israel chose to block representatives of the British people from witnessing what is going on in the West Bank. It was shameful to see the leader of the Conservative Party expressing support for Israel’s decision, a sentiment which was fortunately not shared across her Party as a whole.

This was not just an attack on these representatives but on the people who elected them. The Foreign Secretary rightly condemned it as “disgraceful”. In my intervention, I asked for clarity on what it will take for the government to stop supplying arms for use against civilians in Gaza. Sadly, the government has seen fit to continue supplying arms in spite of a genocide case against Israel at the ICJ and the issue of ICC arrest warrants for senior Israeli politicians. This latest development adds insult to injury.