BICOM

A new UK-Israel parliamentary group was launched yesterday at the Knesset, in order to strengthen relationships between lawmakers in the two countries.

The forum is headed by the Knesset’s Deputy Speaker Hilik Bar, an MK from the opposition Zionist Union party and Likud MK Yoav Kisch. Yesterday’s event was also attended by various British dignitaries, including former-Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government Sir Eric Pickles. The forum itself will also focus on promoting trade, scientific and educational cooperation, areas in which strong bilateral ties already exist.

HIlik Bar, who has a British mother, told the gathering that, “The historic connection between Britain and Zionism started before the establishment of the State of Israel. It is not a coincidence that in almost every city in Israel there is a ‘Balfour’ street, and that two of our greatest presidents – Chaim Weizmann and Chaim Herzog, were of British descent.”

UK Ambassador to Israel David Quarrey commented, “Our new UK-Israel Parliamentary friendship group will build relations between Parliament and the Knesset and is yet another example of the strong ties that bind our two countries together. Such Parliamentary contacts are vital for thriving democracies such as the UK and Israel.”

Meanwhile, Shadow Foreign Secretary Hilary Benn is currently on a three-day visit to Israel and the Palestinian areas of the West Bank. He is scheduled to meet Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas, Israel’s opposition leader and Zionist Union head Isaac Herzog, various MKs and the Director General of Israel’s Ministry for Foreign Affairs, Dr Dore Gold. Benn will also visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial and tour East Jerusalem during his visit.