Meeting of the Parliament 21 November 2023
As a doctor and as the father of two young children, I am deeply shocked by the suffering of all innocents caught up in the violent chaos engulfing Israel and the Palestinian territories. Israelis, Palestinians and nationals of 25 other countries, including many non-combatants and children, are all victims, some at the hands of the Hamas-led terrorists whose barbaric murders, rapes and abductions ignited this chapter of violence, while others have been killed or wounded by missiles or caught in the crossfire as they fled or sought refuge. As we now know, some places of sanctuary, including hospitals, have been perfidiously used by terrorists as cover for their operations.
Israel suffered a horrendous terror attack at the hands of Hamas, and Palestinian civilians in Gaza are experiencing untold misery. I am sure that I am not alone here in saying that the human toll weighs heavily on my conscience. It is a challenge to balance my professional responsibilities with my parental instincts. There is clearly an urgent need for international efforts to find peaceful resolutions, to protect innocent lives—be they Palestinian or Israeli—and to secure the release of Israeli and third-country hostages.
I use the word “resolutions” in the plural because we need a series of measures to create a pathway that will deliver a sustainable ceasefire. The call for an immediate ceasefire is, I fear, setting ourselves up to fail. I say that because Hamas is a proxy terrorist organisation, sponsored by malign actors in the region and bent on the obliteration of Israel and the killing of all Jews. I cannot see a sustainable peace being made with such an organisation.
Another way has been proposed. There is a proposal to begin with a pause in the fighting—some might say a truce—to establish additional corridors for humanitarian relief, to get essential aid into Gaza and to secure safe passage and safe havens for non-combatants. We should be mindful of, and respect, the fact that negotiations, with the aim of releasing hostages and pausing military action, are currently on-going in the region and are at a highly sensitive stage. We have heard within the past hour that the Israeli Prime Minister will meet with his cabinet basically now, in the light of developments related to the release of abductees. That is the situation as we know it right now.
Step by step, that situation can move. It must move to a peace that can last. By using the diplomatic and financial muscle of the international community, we must then reinvigorate the middle east peace process and realise the goal of a two-state solution, in which a safe and secure Israel lives alongside a viable Palestinian state.
Underpinned by regional economic development and integration, as well as by people-to-people exchanges, Israel and other countries in the wider region have already demonstrated that that is possible.
The Abraham accords provided a proof of concept, with Israel normalising relations with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, as well as with Morocco and Sudan, delivering wide-reaching economic benefits. Let us not forget that Israel and Saudi Arabia were also very close to normalising relations before Hamas launched its murderous attacks on 7 October. Nobody should be allowed to stop that wide peace occurring. It is incumbent upon all of us to pursue that peace. For Palestinians and Israelis, pursuing peace would deliver the conditions for economic growth, good jobs, housing, healthcare for all, prospects, and the promise of a prosperous future in which the region’s children and young adults could grow up. However, first, we need to achieve a sustainable ceasefire respected by all parties.
Although the Scottish Conservatives have lodged an amendment to the Scottish Government’s motion, our positions across the chamber are actually very close. It is important to underscore that we stand in solidarity with people of all faiths. We condemn antisemitism and Islamophobia. I feel that we must also be clear that supporters of terrorist organisations that threaten to do us harm have no place in a multifaith, socially tolerant, democratic Scotland. Those are matters of importance to life in Scotland and to the people of Scotland. I fully understand that the Israel-Hamas conflict elicits intense emotions and strong opinions.
The crisis demands international leadership following the news that has come out of the region in the past hour. I hope that we will see the release of hostages and the pause that we all want.
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