Every imported question, contribution and motion, with its classification. Unflagged, uncertain and not-yet-analysed records are all included so the analysis can be checked independently.
I, too, agree with much of what the Member has said, but does he have a single word of condemnation for Hamas, Iran and those who have brought the Middle East to this place? Will he consider the motion that he is about to support and whether that is truly turning his face to the fullness and nuances of the situation?
I thank the Member for giving way. I do not disagree with an awful lot of what you have said; in fact, what you have said is in our amendment. What is key is that we believe that every life, Israeli or Palestinian, is equal, and the motion does not say that. Will you join Sinn Féin and the SDLP in voting for a motion…
FlaggedSectarianism, hate crime and community relationsCriteria met: Identity framing, Dog-whistle messaging.
I speak today as an Alliance Party MLA, but, perhaps more than that, I turn my face to look at the issue. I admit that I have not always done so. As Jeremy Bowen, the BBC's international editor, put it: "the only way some can cope is to stop looking." As a parent of two children and a husband, how could I look? I…
I thank the Member for his question. Lots of figures have been placed on the record. I am simply stating a fact that all the casualty figures that have come out of that area are based on information from the Hamas-run Ministry of Health. The BBC uses those figures, as does every aid organisation. You can go with those…
FlaggedReligion and belief (including people of no religion), churches, faith communities and religious prejudice (including antisemitism and anti-Muslim prejudice)Criteria met: Identity framing, Dog-whistle messaging.
I agree with the Member that transparency is absolutely essential. Does he agree that it is appalling that the Israeli Government will not allow international journalists into Gaza to verify those figures?
There are a lot of aspects of the Sinn Féin motion that I wish I had time to deal with, but I will be able to cover only a few. It quotes figures from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA). The figures that Sinn Féin uses are taken from the office's briefing paper. First, let me…
Just yesterday, a final, desperate plea was heard from Nasser Hospital, which was that, in 24 hours, there would be absolutely no formula left to give to any surviving premature babies. At the very same time, a 33-year-old mother lay on the site with her baby clung to her breast. Unknown to her baby, she had nothing…
I thank the Member for giving way and also for the respectful tone with which he has set out the context in Gaza. Does he agree with or acknowledge concerns in the House about the one-sided and dangerous nature and narrative of the motion? If so, does he support the Ulster Unionists' amendment, which recognises both…
The previous Member who spoke did not give way, yet he was talking about the health system and hospitals. He did not make any reference to Hamas or the fact that it uses those places as bases and its own people as human targets. That has an awful lot to do with the number of dead.
I worry that Dr Aiken set a very clear tone at the beginning of the debate when he cited the IHRA definition and, as per his interpretation of that definition, effectively accused of antisemitism those of us, including those Members who tabled the motion, who care about humanity and want to call out the appalling…
What we witness in Gaza is not a war; it is a brutal, calculated and systemic attempt to erase an entire people physically, socially and politically. Over 50,000 Palestinians have been killed, and thousands more carry wounds that are not only physical but psychological and emotional. It is a humanitarian disaster.…
I thank the Member for giving way. The brutal recollection of facts that she states is uncomfortable for many in the House. Will she add that there are families who today still do not know the whereabouts of their loved ones or whether they are alive or dead and are going through emotional trauma, day in, day out?
I have had enough of listening for months in the House to misinformation and propaganda with nary a word about what the Israelis have suffered. Of course, we do not want to see any people, especially children, starving or hurt, but let us get real about what led to this. Some in the House are all too willing to gloss…
FlaggedReligion and belief (including people of no religion), churches, faith communities and religious prejudice (including antisemitism and anti-Muslim prejudice)Criteria met: Identity framing, Sectarian or communal antagonism, Dog-whistle messaging.
I appreciate the Member's giving way for the purposes of debate. He talks about balance, and balance is important. Does he accept that, in this equation, one side is a nuclear-armed state that lost in an appalling — The Member chunters about Iran. Yes, Iran has a nuclear programme, but it is not a fully armed nuclear…
I thank the Member for giving way. Does he agree that one of the starkest aspects of the motion is its sensationalist use of language, such as: "the use of starvation as a weapon of war"? That totally denies reality. On 16 and 17 June, 149 aid trucks entered the Gaza Strip, and, on 16 June, more than 3·1 million meals…
When the so-called flotilla was making its way towards Gaza, it left Somalis sitting in the water and created an international incident, when it should have been rescuing people? That was some form of humanitarian effort, eh?