Priti Patel's future unknown as details on more secret meetings with Israel emerge

UK International Development Secretary Priti Patel could be fired after more details on her secret meetings with Israeli officials emerged.

Earlier this month Patel apologised for holding 12 unauthorised meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials, businesses and charities while she was on holiday in August.

However, it has now emerged that she held two further meetings with officials in September.

It is understood that the minister met Israel's public security minister Gilad Erdan in Parliament on 7 September and foreign ministry official Yuval Rotem in New York on 18 September.

Erdan posted a picture of the meeting with Patel on Twitter, stating that the pair had discussed how "to advance UK-Israel development cooperation, [and] counter attempts to delegitimise Israel in international institutions".

Prime Minister Theresa May admitted she was not aware of Patel's meetings. In spite of calls to do so, May said she would not fire the cabinet minister because no "damage" had been done and reminded the minister of "her obligations" under the ministerial code.

Patel, currently on a trip to Africa, initially claimed in an interview with the Guardian that Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson was aware of her August trip in advance. She later retracted her comment and said Johnson became aware only when it was underway.

Lord Polak, a leading member of Conservative Friends of Israel, accompanied her to all but one meetings.

Upon return from her trip, Patel asked the Foreign Office to consider supporting humanitarian operations by the Israel army in the occupied Golan Heights, a request that was dismissed as "inappropriate", the BBC reported.

May is now expected to take the decision to fire Patel today (8 November), according to the Sun.

Labour Shadow Cabinet Office Jon Trickett said there were strong grounds to believe Patel had breached the ministerial code and called for a full investigation.

Patel said earlier this week: "This summer I travelled to Israel, on a family holiday paid for myself. While away, I had the opportunity to meet a number of people and organisations. I am publishing a list of who I met.‎ The Foreign and Commonwealth Office was aware of my visit while it was underway‎.

"In hindsight, I can see how my enthusiasm to engage in this way could be misread, and how meetings were set up and reported in a way which did not accord with the usual procedures. I am sorry for this and I apologise for it.

"My first and only aim as the Secretary of State for International Development is to put the interests of British taxpayers and the world's poor at the front of our development work."

May's spokesman said the PM welcomed Patel's clarifications on the matter.

"The prime minister welcomes the secretary of state's clarification about her trip to Israel and has accepted her apology for her handling of the matter. The prime minister met the secretary of state this morning to remind her of the obligations which exist under the ministerial code," said the spokesperson.

"The important point here is that no UK interests were damaged or affected by the meetings which took place. The secretary of state has apologised for the way she handled this matter."