ISRAEL set up more than eight times as many illegal outposts in the West Bank in 2024 than its 25-year average, the Foreign Secretary has said.
Speaking to peers on the International Relations and Defence Committee, David Lammy said that Israel had established 59 known illegal outposts in the Palestinian West Bank last year.
He added: “The average was seven over the last 25 years. That is all undermining the prospects of two states and it's why I announced sanctions on some of that settler behaviour a few months ago.”
In July 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled that Israel’s settlement of the West Bank and East Jerusalem was "illegal" and that the country must end its occupation of those regions and Gaza.
Through 2024, reports said that Israel was only ramping up its illegal activities, which the figures provided by Lammy confirmed.
Earlier this year, Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer was challenged by Emily Thornberry, the chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee, on goods produced on Israel’s illegal settlements being sold in the UK.
Falconer accepted that Israel only labelled its products “Made in Israel”, without distinguishing between things which had come from illegal settlements, meaning that it was impossible for UK firms to know which goods they are dealing with.
Speaking to Lords on Wednesday, the Foreign Secretary said that illegal settlement expansion was “undermining the viability” of a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict, adding that “settler violence levels are shocking”.
Labour peer Bruce Grocott raised with Lammy the prospect of the party living up to its manifesto pledge of recognising Palestine as a state.
“If we wait until Israel says ‘yes we agree with that’, then it's simply not going to be achieved, certainly not during the course of the life of this government,” Grocott said.
“Let me be clear, no one has a veto on when the United Kingdom recognises that Palestinian state,” Lammy responded. “That's the first thing.
“The second thing is that I recognise that there are some who see this as symbolic, and there are countries in Europe that have taken this step recently [like Norway, Spain, and Ireland].
“But … whilst it was a symbolic act, you've got to ask yourself, did it change much on the ground? And the sad conclusion is it didn't.
“We have always said that recognition is not the end in and of itself.
“Two states is the end in and of itself, and we would prefer recognition as part of a process to two states.”
Labour has continued to supply weapons to Israel, including parts for F-35 jets which have been used in Gaza, where the country is credibly accused of committing genocide.
The UK Government has also continued close diplomatic relations with Israel, including hosting its foreign minister Gideon Sa'ar for secret talks during Westminster's Easter recess.
