PM urges 'justice' for Palestinians

7:52pm Sunday 20th July 2008

Gordon Brown has called for "justice" for the Palestinian people, condemning Israeli settlements in the West Bank.

But the Prime Minister also demanded an end to suicide bombings and rocket attacks against Israel.

In his first visit to the territories as premier, Mr Brown pledged another £30 million of British support to help the Palestinians with economic reconstruction and improved security.

After talks with Palestinian president Mahmoud Abbas, Mr Brown delivered a message to both sides engaged in the peace process.

Having passed the massive Israeli security barrier on the way to the meeting in Bethlehem, Mr Brown said: "As a child, I learned about Bethlehem from the Bible as a symbol of peace and a symbol of hope. But today, the wall here is graphic evidence of the urgent need for justice for the Palestinian people and an end to the occupation and the need for a viable Palestinian state."

He went on to call for an end to Israeli incursions into Palestinian territories after Mr Abbas expressed his "deepest concern" that they were undermining last year's celebrated Annapolis agreement.

The Prime Minister said: "We want to see a freeze on settlements. Settlement expansion has made peace harder to achieve. It erodes trust, it heightens Palestinian suffering, it makes the compromises Israel will need to make for peace more difficult. So we are very clear - not just Britain but the whole of the European Union - what should be done."

But he added: "We are also clear that the violence must stop too. Terrorism is a major obstacle to Palestinian statehood and the efforts to ease movements and access restrictions must continue but there is a long way to go here too."

At a press conference with Mr Abbas earlier, Mr Brown promised to expand British help with training for Palestinian police and security forces and said he would host an investment conference in London.

He went on to urge those involved in the peace process to "seize the opportunity" as Mr Abbas said he was "hopeful" of an agreement, even by the end of the year. He said: "I believe there is a will on the part of the international community, not just to do everything that we can to support the peace process, but to underpin that peace process with economic support for the Palestinian people."

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