I was invited to the West Bank as a doctor and MP – and Israel sent me packing

It was only a couple of days ago that I sat with my friend and parliamentary colleague, Dr Peter Prinsley MP, at the Sheikh Hussein border crossing between Jordan and Israel.

- 

We had flown out to Amman, the Jordanian capital, the night before, and had just driven an hour or so across the Jordan Valley to a place that turned out to be one of the lowest places on earth — 413m below sea level. The air was stifling and hot, and the atmosphere was becoming increasingly intense.

The Israeli border force was reluctant to let us cross. Ultimately, after several calls with the Foreign Office and others, the guards gave us papers telling us that we were a threat to “public safety, security and order” and therefore deemed unfit to visit their country. In due course, we were escorted to a bus that took us back to the Jordanian side of the border, and we made our way back to Amman. Just over a day later, we were back in the UK.