LONDON, April 29, 2025 (WAFA) - As part of his official visit to the United Kingdom, Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa held a series of high-level meetings with British officials, civil society leaders, and members of the Palestinian and Arab communities to discuss the dire situation in Palestine and mobilize international support.
Prime Minister Mustafa met with the Speaker of the House of Commons, Sir Lindsay Hoyle; the Chair and members of the House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee; and the UK Parliamentary Friends of Palestine group.
The visit also included a strategic lecture and discussion at the Royal Institute of International Affairs (Chatham House), attended by diplomats, researchers, journalists, representatives of civil society, and non-governmental organizations. The Prime Minister also met with the Council of Arab Ambassadors in the UK and members of the Palestinian community.
In his meetings, Prime Minister Mustafa provided a comprehensive briefing on the latest developments in Palestine, including the ongoing Israeli aggression and genocidal war against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. He detailed the worsening humanitarian catastrophe in the war-torn enclave, particularly Israel’s continued blockade of humanitarian aid, food, and medicine.
He also shed light on the situation in the occupied West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem, where Israeli occupation aggression, particularly in the northern West Bank, continue alongside accelerated colonial expansion, escalating colonists’ violence, and the financial siege through the illegal withholding and piracy of Palestinian tax funds.
The Prime Minister reiterated that halting the Israeli genocidal war, ending the occupation, and realizing the Palestinian people’s rights to freedom, dignity, return, and self-determination are not only Palestinian demands but binding obligations under international law and our collective human conscience and shared humanity. He unequivocally rejected all Israeli attempts to forcibly displace Palestinians from Gaza and the West Bank, including occupied Jerusalem.
Mustafa also urged British officials to defend the mandate of UNRWA against Israel’s campaign and ensure its sustainable funding so the agency can fulfill its humanitarian and educational duties toward Palestine refugees. He further called for support for Palestine’s full membership in the United Nations.
In addition, the Prime Minister met with Odile Renaud-Basso, President of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), to strengthen cooperation and align the Bank’s efforts with those of the Palestinian Government across key sectors. These include investments in renewable energy, reconstruction, and recovery in Gaza once the Israeli aggression ceases.
He expressed appreciation for the EBRD’s programs supporting micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs), and emphasized their critical role in economic recovery, job creation, and sustainable development in Palestine.
Prime Minister Mustafa was joined by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs and Expatriates, Varsen Aghabekian Shaheen, Minister of Health, Majed Abu Ramadan, and Ambassador of the State of Palestine to the United Kingdom, Husam Zomlot.
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