EXCLUSIVE: UK Government challenges Israel over seized Dundee fire engine donated to Palestine.

The fire engine was transported to Nablus in the West Bank, but it has been kept by Israeli officials for more than a year.

Britain’s Middle East minister, Hamish Falconer, has faced Israel over the year-long seizure of a Dundee fire engine donated to Palestine’s West Bank.

The apparatus was donated to the Nablus Fire Department, but it may be returned to the UK when villagers were handed a £16,000 bill for port storage costs.

It is now impounded at the Port of Ashdod. The Courier has learnt that the detained fire engine has been discussed directly with Israeli officials by the UK government.

A Foreign Office spokesman acknowledged that Middle East Minister Hamish Falconer and Foreign Office diplomats raised the issue directly with Israeli officials.

A spokesman for the government commented:

“The UK continues to call on Israel to increase humanitarian and commercial access into the Palestinian territories by ensuring all aid crossings are fully operational, international NGOs are permitted to operate freely and safely, and humanitarian supplies are allowed to reach those in need at the pace and scale that is necessary to tackle this crisis.”

Stephen Gethins, MP for Arbroath and Broughty Ferry, says the lack of action despite senior-level engagement indicates the UK’s “weakened” position.

He told The Courier that the blockade of life-saving equipment reflects Israel’s contempt for humanitarianism.

Dundee firefighters ‘deserve better’

“It also reflects the UK’s reduced standing in the globe that the Foreign, Commonwealth, and Development Office has been unable to do anything about it despite repeated protests over the last few years.

“This was a humanitarian gesture by local firefighters and they deserve better.” Authorities in Nablus have requested that the important donation be returned to the UK.

The Fire Brigades Union claims that holding the appliance in port could result in “crippling” expenditures for the West Bank city.

It was captured by Israeli customs officials in July 2024 after arriving with the proper documents, with firefighting equipment and medical supplies.

It is stated that the unwillingness to release the car for delivery to Nablus is due to the vehicle’s right-hand drive, despite a vow to retrofit it. Dundee was twinned with Nablus, a Palestinian city, in 1980.

The fire engine donation was coordinated by Jim Malone, a former Dundee firefighter who had visited the territory. The Israeli Embassy did not respond to a request for comment.

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