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Gaza

My Lords, no one can fail to be moved by the scenes of devastation in Gaza. I am far from alone in feeling deeply distressed. But no one—not Israel, not Hamas and, I am afraid, not the EU, Britain or America—can avoid a sense of ownership for the death and destruction in Gaza. We in the West have ignored for far too long the deadly game that Hamas has been playing in firing its thousands of missiles when it was absolutely clear that Israel would have to respond at some point. Of course, accusations have flown back and forth about the behaviour of Israel and Hamas, but we in the West are also culpable for not recognising the danger to Israel and to the Palestinians in Gaza of the smuggling of missiles for Hamas. Everyone, including Mahmoud Abbas and President Mubarek of Egypt, knew. Indeed accusations have recently been reiterated that Hamas was the root cause of the disaster. Even the West Bank Palestinians, although obviously very distressed by the fate of their brothers in Gaza, recognise the role of Hamas, as do many people in Gaza itself, where they have been able to speak out, usually anonymously. I really was not going to get into the blame game today but, since so much has been made in the media to demonise Israel's role in the conflict, I want to say a few words about where I think the responsibility really lies for these terrible events. My question now is whether there are any grounds for believing that something positive might emerge from all this turmoil because that is where I believe we should be focusing our efforts now and pressing as hard as we can for a two-state solution. The tragedy is that everyone, not least the Israelis and Palestinians, knows what shape an agreement should be and what compromises will be needed: withdrawal of the settlements from the West Bank; a deal on some sort of sharing of Jerusalem on Israel's part; and a compromise on the right of return together with serious security arrangements by the Palestinians. All these must have been discussed ad nauseam, and only weak political wills and the extremists on both sides have delayed their implementation. I say ““delayed”” because they have to happen at some point. Are there any grounds now for even a glimmer of hope? I believe there are. First, whatever it might say, Hamas has undoubtedly been weakened by the conflict. Of course, it has not been eliminated, nor could it be. But a large number of its missiles have been destroyed, and its supply of more has been seriously compromised. Thank goodness, there is now a belated but almost universal recognition that more must be done to prevent the smuggling of arms from Egypt and the sea. If—it is a big if, I know—Egypt does stop the smuggling, Israel will feel less threatened by a Hamas without missiles. As Hamas has been weakened, Abu Mazen and the Palestinian Authority may have gained some strength. There is some evidence of movement in the West Bank. All the economic aid which is being put in is having an impact. The unemployment rate is falling, average wages are rising and 150 or so checkpoints have been removed. A visit now to Nablus and Jenin sees cities busily getting on with life, no longer under curfew and with the Palestinian Authority police having successfully taken over control from the IDF. Of course, there is an enormous amount more that needs doing and conditions remain very difficult, but these are steps in the right direction. Tony Blair can take at least some of the credit for his quiet, patient, behind-the-scenes work to facilitate these changes. So there is an opportunity to build on this and for the EU and the US to give Mahmoud Abbas much-needed support, so that he is strengthened in his ability to negotiate. We should be focusing on that. In Israel, despite the misgivings of many about the scenes from Gaza and differing views of the conflict, the vast majority of the population, sick and tired of their people in the south rushing to the shelters every day, were right behind the Government and their actions. Incidentally, I do not recognise the Israel described by the noble Lord, Lord Wallace, as being brutalised. When I go there, I see a community that is very worried, concerned and desperate for peace and security. The leadership, which for once was united, has been strengthened, and whoever wins the coming election will be in a stronger position and will have more popular support than many previous Administrations. Of course, Israeli politics are never predictable, so who knows who will have the leadership next week. A lurch to the right might be seen as unhelpful, especially if the extreme right gains some influence. It is worth remembering, however, that it has usually been a right-wing Likud Government who have been able to do a land-for-peace deal in the past. We have a situation in which the leaders in both Israel and the PA are either in a better position to negotiate a two-state solution or could be helped to get into that position. I will come back to Hamas in a moment. Then, of course, we have the Obama effect. Despite the innumerable problems on his plate, he no doubt will want to bring his considerable influence to bear on Israel and the PA, and that must be a very positive factor. It is conceivable that we may soon have a situation where strengthened leaders might be able to announce a deal and carry a majority with them against the resistance of extremists on both sides. No one, I imagine, underestimates the difficulties to be overcome, nor the time it may take, but a signed agreement would be a marvellous first step in showing everyone where the future could lie. I may be hopelessly optimistic and naive, but I would rather have that as an aim than a future without hope, and that is where I believe we in the UK should be focusing all our efforts. Where does that leave Hamas? Its policy, unfortunately, remains the same as it always was and it is not likely to change soon; it is the total destruction of Israel and a reclaiming of Palestine for radical Islam. Israel is criticised for not negotiating with Hamas but, pace the noble Lord, Lord Eden of Winton, it is Hamas that will not talk to Israel. It goes further and has made it clear that it regards Abu Mazen and Fatah as traitors for speaking to Israel about a two-state solution. Indeed, it has been busy eliminating Fatah sympathisers from Gaza. It wants a one-state, not a two-state, solution. This has hitherto made it virtually impossible for the PA and Israel to forge a solution. Clearly, Hamas cannot be eliminated, but nor will it include itself in a peace process. So, for the moment at least, the only rational way forward is for it to be marginalised. If I sound bitter about Hamas, I hope noble Lords will recognise why I do. An organisation that is willing to train its five year-olds to hate and kill Jews wherever they are, even here, and to train them to become suicide bombers; an organisation that snatches up its children to stand alongside them as they fire at their enemy, as we have seen on video clips; which booby-traps schools and stashes its explosives in mosques, which incidentally is why so many of them blew up; which fires from among its civilian population; an organisation which kills and maims its fellow Palestinians cannot and should not receive sympathy or support. It is Hamas which hijacked trucks carrying food and medical supplies from Israel during, and I am afraid since, the conflict, according to UN inspectors, and it is Hamas which has fired on the crossings preventing the movement of fuel and oil to its own population, simply to try to confirm how bad Israel is in allowing aid across. All this is now confirmed by UN and UNRWA inspectors. While a peace agreement will at some point require Hamas to come on board, the desperate Palestinians on the West Bank can ill afford to be asked to wait for ever until Hamas changes its policies. They deserve much better. We must grasp any opportunity which might come out of this turmoil. I hope that my noble friend the Minister will say more about how we can help both sides, how we can press Egypt and help it really to clamp down on smuggling across the border and, rather than laying blame and criticism, which does nothing for the Palestinians, I hope that we are offering constructive proposals and aid, so that we might have some hope of a just and lasting peace.