Commenting on the result of the elections in Israel, Richard Burden MP, Chair of the Britain-Palestine All-Party Parliamentary Group, today said:
“When the results of the Palestinian election were announced the international community was very clear about the importance of the new Palestinian government standing by international law and international agreements.
“It is important that an equally clear message goes to whichever parties end up forming the new government of Israel. Continued occupation or unilateral attempts to annex land already illegally occupied would be incompatible with that message.
“The future for ordinary Palestinians and Israelis is intertwined and both have suffered too much over the years. That is why continued violence or unilateral actions offer no future for either community, and why it is important that negotiations take place on the basis of UN resolutions to find a peaceful solution, with a secure Israel living side by side with an equally secure and independent Palestinian state and with justice for Palestinian refugees.
“I was an observer at the Palestinian elections in January. The practical differences between that poll, and the election yesterday are clear because of the occupation. Candidates were unable to move freely to campaign, and in East Jerusalem, Palestinians weren’t even allowed to hold their own elections as the Israeli government forced them to vote in Post Offices, rather than in polling stations.
“This demonstrates again why it is so important that a peaceful resolution must be found to resolve this conflict and to end the occupation of the Palestinian territories.”
