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2.47 pm
Mr. Greville Janner (Leicester, West): I thank the hon. Member for Hendon, South (Mr. Marshall) for securing the debate and associate myself with everything that he said. I also thank him for being a great personal friend and pair and a doughty friend of Israel and of the Jewish people. I salute the work that he has done and is doing.
I also pay my respects to the Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the right hon. Member for Richmond and Barnes (Mr. Hanley) who, unlike his predecessor, has a clear vision of peace in the middle east and an understanding of the problems of a democratic Israel. In response to my outcry at the proposed closure of the British Council operation in Jerusalem, he stopped that closure. I greatly appreciate that, as do the many people who use it.
I shall deal with one further aspect of the peace process to which the hon. Member for Hendon, South has drawn attention. As chairman of the Maimonides Foundation--a Jewish organisation that seeks to foster good relations between Jews and Muslims--I have worked closely with the Muslim community. I pay special tribute to those in that community who have cried out against the attacks to which the hon. Gentleman referred. I pay tribute to Saba Risaluddin, the head of the Calamus Foundation, who said:
I pay respectful tribute to Ayatollah Rouhani, Imam of the Paris mosque and spiritual leader of the Shi'ite community in Europe, who called on
I thank my dear friend and respected ally Sheikh Dr. Zaki Badawi, principal of the Muslim college in London, who wrote to The Times to attack
We have heroism in the middle east. We have the heroism of the Israelis in the face of attacks launched by people using pawns--those who believe that they will go to paradise by that path--but who would not take those risks themselves. We have the heroism of Shimon Peres and his people. He is coming up for election and we should think very carefully before we attack, in any way, the Israelis' efforts to damp down terrorism or the steps they have found it necessary to take in face of the ghastly atrocities that their people have faced. They have an election process, which others do not.
There is a certain heroism also on the other side and in Chairman Arafat, who is himself under constant attack.I hope that he will rise to what could be a great occasion for peace.
The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Mr. Jeremy Hanley):
I am most grateful to my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon, South(Mr. Marshall) for the opportunity to address the issues surrounding the middle east peace process. I wish to thank him and the hon. and learned Member for Leicester, West (Mr. Janner), who are at the forefront of all those in the House of Commons who care deeply about the peace process. They are the most genuine and regular speakers on the subject. Both of them are friends and I listen to, take advice from and discuss the issues with them.
I am saddened that there are no Front Benchers from the Labour or Liberal Democrat parties. That is regrettable, but the weight of opinion of my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon, South and my hon. and learned Friend--if I may so call him--the Member for Leicester, West has made up for that, given the importance of this debate.
The peace process is an issue of great concern to the Government and, I am sure, to all right hon. and hon. Members. I know that we are all deeply shocked and saddened by the recent dreadful terrorist outrages in Jerusalem, Ashkelon and Tel Aviv. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister and my right hon. and learned Friend the Foreign Secretary have expressed the Government's deep outrage and revulsion at the attacks and I am sure that all hon. Members join me in those sentiments. It has been deeply painful for all of us to see the threat to peace from those appalling actions, and we must not give the bombers the victory that they seek. Peace is their enemy and we must remained determined to achieve peace.
In these difficult days, the United Kingdom has made clear its wholehearted support for the struggle against terrorism and the continuation of the peace process.My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister attended the summit chaired by Egypt and the United States at Sharm el-Sheikh on 13 March, to which my hon. Friend the Member for Hendon, South referred. My right hon. Friend the Prime Minister made clear the United Kingdom's support for peace through negotiation, coupled with our implacable opposition to terrorism. Officials are today taking part in a follow-up meeting to the Sharm el-Sheikh summit which we hope will lead to agreement on practical measures that the international community can take together to fight the terrorists. The Government will continue to support the process begun at Sharm el-Sheikh. Now, more than ever, the international community must unite behind the peacemakers.
The United Kingdom has been active diplomatically since the terrorist attacks to bolster the fight against terrorism and to boost support for the peace process.
We have spoken to Israel's neighbours about the vocal presence in their midst of violent opponents to the peace process. We have urged other countries of the middle east to consider what more they might do to fight terrorism,to undermine support for it and for those who fund it and more actively support the peace process. The presence of many Arab countries at Sharm el-Sheikh suggests that our representations, coupled with those of others, may have had some effect.
For those countries that continue to oppose the peace process, such as Iran and Libya, we have only one message. Their policy is unacceptable. The charge d'affaires of the Iranian embassy in London was told that when he called into the Foreign Office after the bombings. We were outraged by Iran's initial reaction and little impressed by its subsequent equivocations. If Iran wishes to be treated with respect, it must recognise the force of that message and act accordingly. With our European partners, we will continue to press that home through the European Union's critical dialogue with Iran. We believe that the Iranian Government and their surrogates continue to promote international terrorism and that they have been responsible for many attacks on Iranian dissidents in Europe since 1989. As my hon. Friend said, the recent decision by the German federal prosecutor to indict the chief of the Iranian Ministry of Intelligence Services,Ali Fallahian, adds weight to that claim.
In practical terms, the United Kingdom is doing much to help both the Israelis and the Palestinians fight the terrorists. Two City of London police experts are visiting Israel to offer advice on the surveillance and other techniques that help to form the ring of steel around the City of London. Although I cannot go into details today, there are other forms of co-operation with Israel in sharing information on the terrorist threat.
With the Palestinians, we are looking urgently at what further assistance we can give the Palestinian police in addition to the substantial assistance that we have given them in training and logistics to help them to maintain order and security in Gaza and the west bank. I was also pleased to visit Gaza not long ago and to see the gift of radios that has so helped the Palestinian police with security and the election process.
I am pleased too that the European Union is urgently working up a programme of assistance in counter-terrorism to the Palestinian police. We shall ensure that that assistance is promptly given and co-ordinated in full with the other assistance that the Palestinian authority is receiving.
The United Kingdom fully understands the pressing need for Israel to re-establish security for its citizens. They deserve that. We understand the need for the tough measures that have been taken. At the same time, we also recognise--this is a point of agreement between the Israeli Government and the Palestinian authority and both made it firmly to me during my recent visit to the region in January--that stability in Gaza and the west bank depends on employment and prosperity for the Palestinian people. We recognise the extremely difficult task facing the Israeli Government in balancing their security needs with the needs of the Palestinian people. I know that they are tackling the issue with the maximum energy and determination. We welcome the easing of the closures that has already taken place and hope that the Israeli Government will be able to relax measures further,but only where compatible with their security needs.
I met the Prime Minister, Shimon Peres, when he came to London and was impressed with his determination to secure the future for his people. I was also impressed with the way he felt that prosperity for the Palestinian people would aid security for the region as a whole and further the peace process. I believe that all hon. Members wish the Israeli Government well in achieving those aims.
My hon. Friend also mentioned Ron Arad and the other brave people who are missing in action. I raised that issue with Yasser Arafat directly and felt that he was most positive in his responses. We should and could make further progress, although it is difficult since we are largely dealing with the Iranians and others on the matter. I hope that progress can be made, not just because of those individuals and their families, but because I cannot think of any issue that would be a greater confidence-booster than if we were to find a solution to this long-standing problem which is at root, as my hon. Friend said so movingly, a humanitarian, family matter.
These are difficult days for Israel and the Palestinians. Despite the gloom of current circumstances, we must not forget that there is still a peace process. We must remember how much has been achieved. There are agreements between Israel and the Palestine Liberation Organisation, which detail their mutual recognition and a process by which they can accommodate their differing interests. A Palestinian Authority has been established.As I mentioned earlier, there have been successful democratic elections for the new Palestinian Council and its president. We applaud these achievements and those who made them happen.
The vast majority of Palestinians and Israelis still crave peace and want the peace process to work. The terrorists cannot be allowed to dictate the fate of everyone else. They cannot be allowed to consign their neighbours to endless and pointless violence.
I shall say a few words about the Arab boycott, which is felt strongly in the United Kingdom and beyond. Following the first meeting of the Israel-Britain chamber of commerce, Israel's Minister for Trade, Micha Harish, told my right hon. Friend the President of the Board of Trade that he was convinced that the boycott was no longer regarded by British business men as an obstacle to trading with Israel. Indeed, the rocketing trade figures over the past few years bear out that belief.
Both the Department of Trade and Industry and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office are taking a robust line, ensuring that companies are left in no doubt over our
disapproval of the boycott. We are recommending, where possible, the use of an EU certificate rather than a certificate issued by the Arab-British chamber of commerce. The DTI, however, has an obligation to inform exporters of the facts. It would be useless to recommend the use of an EU certificate to a country which did not accept it, such as Syria.
The Arab boycott is now on its knees. Its final death throes are ever closer. It is unlikely, however, that the Arab League will end it formally before there is a comprehensive peace between Israel and all her Arab neighbours, but Egypt and Jordan have formally abandoned the boycott, the Gulf Co-operation Council no longer applies the secondary and tertiary aspects of it, and it is not applied, in practice, by Tunisia and Morocco. Only a few hard-line Arab countries insist on applying it. But while the Arab boycott office in Damascus is still open, we shall work hard to ensure that progress in the peace process brings with it a complete end to a useless, senseless and counterproductive boycott.
We look forward, of course, to the final settlement of the Arab-Israel dispute. The foundation of the settlement between Israel and the Palestinians, in the form of the declaration of principles and the interim agreement, already exists. We must all keep this goal in sight,for with it comes the prospect of a comprehensive middle east peace. Such a peace would bring immense prosperity to the entire region.
In that context, the United Kingdom welcomed the negotiations between Syria and Israel, which began at the Wye Plantation at the end of last year. The talks are currently suspended, but we hope that they will be resumed as soon as possible. It is vital that this opportunity for a comprehensive peace is not lost.We welcome the flexibility that both sides have shown to their approach to these talks and hope that they will continue to exhibit so constructive an attitude if and when the talks resume.
Our support is for those brave men and women, Palestinian as well as Israeli, who are building peace in the middle east. Nothing should detract from that goal. We shall do all that we can to help prevent the terrorists from destroying their and our dream of a comprehensive and lasting peace.
Question put and agreed to.
"Terrorism is completely alien to the ethos of Islam, as it is to the ethos of all the world's great faiths."
"all Islamic organisations and personalities to issue a joint fatwa condemning loud and clear all terrorist actions carried out by terrorist groups under the name of Islam aimed at the peace process in the Middle East".
"those who glory in acts of violence and who equate peace with weakness. In this sad and crucial time, heroism should be accorded only to the peacemakers."
Adjourned accordingly at three minutes past Three o'clock.
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