This Library Note provides background material on recent developments in the Middle East and North Africa.

This Library Note provides background material on recent developments in the Middle East and North Africa.

This Library Note provides a brief summary of recent developments in selected countries in the Middle East and North Africa, as well as a table of statistical information covering the whole of the region.

This Library Note provides a brief summary of recent developments in selected countries in the Middle East and North Africa, as well as a table of statistical information covering the whole of the region.

Motion that this House has considered the matter of UK policy on the middle east. Agreed on question.

Motion that this House has considered the matter of UK policy on the middle east. Agreed on question.

Thank you very much, Mr Deputy Speaker. I am, of course, grateful to you for the opportunity that you give me, terrifying as it is, to make my first contribution to a debate in the House. I confess to hesitating before doing so in a debate that touches so many...

Thank you very much, Mr Deputy Speaker. I am, of course, grateful to you for the opportunity that you give me, terrifying as it is, to make my first contribution to a debate in the House. I confess to hesitating before doing so in a debate that touches so many...

In congratulating my hon. Friend on his appointment, I refer him to the proverb, "To every man with a hammer, the problem always seems a nail." Will he do what he can, and get his Department on board, to try to impress on the Israelis the fact that Hamas is...

In congratulating my hon. Friend on his appointment, I refer him to the proverb, "To every man with a hammer, the problem always seems a nail." Will he do what he can, and get his Department on board, to try to impress on the Israelis the fact that Hamas is...

How optimistic is my hon. Friend that the Fayyad plan to build a Palestinian state within two years will be successful?

How optimistic is my hon. Friend that the Fayyad plan to build a Palestinian state within two years will be successful?

This country has consistently asked Israel to join the non-proliferation treaty as a non-weapons-holding state. Israel was mentioned in the non-proliferation treaty review conference in the context of the desire to move the resolution on a middle east free of nuclear weapons and, indeed, weapons of mass destruction. The resolution...

This country has consistently asked Israel to join the non-proliferation treaty as a non-weapons-holding state. Israel was mentioned in the non-proliferation treaty review conference in the context of the desire to move the resolution on a middle east free of nuclear weapons and, indeed, weapons of mass destruction. The resolution...

May I begin by saying that it is nice to see you in your new place, Mr Deputy Speaker? The Minister and his Labour shadow made wide-ranging speeches about the nature of the various problems in the middle east. I want to confine my remarks to the situation in Palestine,...

May I begin by saying that it is nice to see you in your new place, Mr Deputy Speaker? The Minister and his Labour shadow made wide-ranging speeches about the nature of the various problems in the middle east. I want to confine my remarks to the situation in Palestine,...

We need to take each case on its merit, and look at whether any of those individuals committed criminal offences. If not, those people should of course be released immediately, as a confidence-building measure towards progress in the peace process. My right hon. Friend the shadow Foreign Secretary has welcomed...

We need to take each case on its merit, and look at whether any of those individuals committed criminal offences. If not, those people should of course be released immediately, as a confidence-building measure towards progress in the peace process. My right hon. Friend the shadow Foreign Secretary has welcomed...

The state of Israel rejected the inquiry as being biased and unfair. The reality is that the British Government refused even to vote on the issue; they did not vote for or against it. They did not even abstain. They just refused to vote. It is perceived as being not...

The state of Israel rejected the inquiry as being biased and unfair. The reality is that the British Government refused even to vote on the issue; they did not vote for or against it. They did not even abstain. They just refused to vote. It is perceived as being not...

Does the hon. Gentleman accept that he would not achieve his fifth point unless he got a resolution on his first four points? There can be no overall settlement unless the aspirations on both sides of the argument can be met at the same time.

Does the hon. Gentleman accept that he would not achieve his fifth point unless he got a resolution on his first four points? There can be no overall settlement unless the aspirations on both sides of the argument can be met at the same time.

The hon. Gentleman has a perfectly common-sense perspective. As all hon. Members know, although setting out the parameters is important, in a negotiation of such complexity, when the stakes are so high and when public opinion on both sides matters, there must be the necessary compromise. If non-negotiable matters are...

The hon. Gentleman has a perfectly common-sense perspective. As all hon. Members know, although setting out the parameters is important, in a negotiation of such complexity, when the stakes are so high and when public opinion on both sides matters, there must be the necessary compromise. If non-negotiable matters are...

I pay tribute to the hon. Gentleman for the work he did as a Minister and for his clear statements this afternoon. Does he agree that it is vital that all parties understand that we need a secure middle east not just for Muslims and Jews, but for Christians and...

I pay tribute to the hon. Gentleman for the work he did as a Minister and for his clear statements this afternoon. Does he agree that it is vital that all parties understand that we need a secure middle east not just for Muslims and Jews, but for Christians and...

I agree entirely with the hon. Gentleman. One lesson we should have learned from a long history of conflicts all over the world is that preventive work, both at a political and a people level, is far more effective than intervening when things go wrong.

I agree entirely with the hon. Gentleman. One lesson we should have learned from a long history of conflicts all over the world is that preventive work, both at a political and a people level, is far more effective than intervening when things go wrong.

I agree with my hon. Friend in the sense that as long as that remains Hamas's position, it is inconceivable that it will be drawn into any credible peace process. The criteria that the Quartet has laid down—recognition of Israel, a denunciation of violence and a respect for previous agreements—are...

I agree with my hon. Friend in the sense that as long as that remains Hamas's position, it is inconceivable that it will be drawn into any credible peace process. The criteria that the Quartet has laid down—recognition of Israel, a denunciation of violence and a respect for previous agreements—are...

The hon. Gentleman said that the world would not stand by and let Iran develop nuclear weapons. What would the world actually do? Would it pass a resolution of condemnation or what?

The hon. Gentleman said that the world would not stand by and let Iran develop nuclear weapons. What would the world actually do? Would it pass a resolution of condemnation or what?

Does my hon. Friend agree that Hamas, with its view that eliminating the state of Israel is a religious imperative, is a real obstacle to peace?

Does my hon. Friend agree that Hamas, with its view that eliminating the state of Israel is a religious imperative, is a real obstacle to peace?

Does the hon. Lady recognise that equally the Government should apply pressure to Hamas to ensure that the force that it uses is not successful, that the repressive approach that it takes is counter-productive, and that the authoritative way in which it goes forward is self-defeating?

Does the hon. Lady recognise that equally the Government should apply pressure to Hamas to ensure that the force that it uses is not successful, that the repressive approach that it takes is counter-productive, and that the authoritative way in which it goes forward is self-defeating?