UK to boost Mideast peacebuilding efforts

LONDON, Dec 9 (KUNA( -- The United Kingdom will host a key peacebuilding conference on 12 March next year "to help establish an International Peace Fund for Israel and Palestine," the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said in a statement on Tuesday.
The conference at Lancaster House will bring together civil society leaders from across the region and delivers on the Prime Minister's pledge to host the event and set up a fund which can provide the long-term finance that is required for peacebuilding efforts to deliver genuine change.
October's US-led ceasefire agreement - and President Trump's 20-Point Plan - have presented a critical opportunity to achieve lasting peace and security in the Middle East, according to the statement. All living hostages have since been released and the UK continues to push for the remaining deceased hostage to be returned. Gradually, more aid is getting into Gaza but much more needs to be done and the UK is pressing for all restrictions to be lifted so that humanitarian supplies can be delivered at the pace and volume required, especially with winter drawing in. Civil society organisations in Israel and Palestine have a vital role to play in reinforcing the forward momentum of recent months.
Over the past year, the UK has been working with partners on the ground and internationally to ensure that civil society groups are ready to take the lead in advancing long-term stability, and driving progress towards a two-state solution, with peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians alike. Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "After two years of the most horrendous suffering, the US-led ceasefire agreement has now been in place for two months. But it remains highly fragile, and there is still a long journey ahead to implement the 20-point plan endorsed by the United Nations, and achieve a just and lasting peace." "This conference will be a crucial step in that journey, bringing together representatives of Palestinian and Israeli civil society to build common ground between their communities, challenge entrenched divisions, and work towards a future where both states can live side-by-side in peace and security," she noted. "With the UK's experience of the reconciliation process in Northern Ireland and our ongoing support for peacebuilding in Western Balkans, we are well placed to host and facilitate these talks, and the new International Peace Fund we are helping to create will provide the practical support to drive this work forward.
"The UK- hosted meeting will bring together international peacebuilding expertise and civil society organisations from the Middle East, to map existing peace-building work and support the establishment of an International Peace Fund for Israel and Palestine," Secretary Cooper added. Discussions will focus on the practical steps that the Peace Fund can best support, and the best practice that can be learned from other similar initiatives, including the International Fund for Ireland that helped support dialogue and reconciliation between unionist and nationalist communities more than a decade before the Good Friday Agreement. The fund will support activities that bring Israelis and Palestinians together to reduce violence, build trust, and create the conditions for a lasting and just peace. (end) nbs.gb