Written question asked by Lord Hylton (Crossbench), in the House of Lords. It was answered by Lord Howell of Guildford (Conservative) on Monday, 23 April 2012.

Israel and Palestine

Question: To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the Government of Israel and to the Palestinian Authority about violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinian residents of the West Bank.

Answer: We are deeply concerned at the increase in violence by extremist settlers against ordinary Palestinians. This violence has included burning of mosques. As the Parliamentary Under-Secretary for State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, my honourable friend the Member for North East Bedfordshire (Mr Burt) has commented publicly, we condemn such acts as deliberately provocative attacks on places of worship, designed to aggravate tensions. We welcome the clear condemnation of these attacks by Israeli leaders, and the stated intention of the Israeli Government to bring the perpetrators to justice. We have urged Israel to investigate all such incidents of violence and to hold those responsible to account. The package of measures announced by Prime Minister Netanyahu in response to settler violence is a welcome step forward. We look forward to seeing the results of these measures, and to seeing those behind the violence punished under law.

Secondary information