OXFORD West and Abingdon MP Layla Moran has called on the government to recognise Palestine as a state, amid widespread violence in Gaza.

Ms Moran - who is the first British parliamentarian of Palestinian descent - said that hope ‘had died’ this week.

She asked the government if now was the time to give the Palestinians recognition, following clashes in the wake of pro-Israel moves by the US government. A minister responded: “Recognition to the Palestinian state remains open at a time when it is best designed to serve the cause of peace.”