Write to letters@thetimes.co.ukSir, Having rightly suspended trade talks with Israel (news, May 21), the government should now make clear that should there ever be such a deal it would specifically forbid any trade from or to illegal Israeli settlements in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. The illegality of settlements has been the accepted policy of both Labour and Tory governments for decades. Any trade with them is therefore tantamount to denying that policy, and should itself be deemed illegal. Sir Alan DuncanForeign minister, 2016-19; London SW1Sir, In castigating Israel for the intolerable situation in Gaza, the government is in danger of being seen as rewarding Hamas and its puppet masters in Iran. Hamas may be losing the battle but it is
