Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron has called for “a stop to the fighting right now” in Gaza – but stopped short of calling for an immediate ceasefire.
Speaking on a visit to the Falkland Islands, he said the violence should pause “straight away” after a member of Benjamin Netanyahu‘s war cabinet threatened to invade the city of Rafah unless hostages held by Hamas are freed by Ramadan.
The UK government has not supported calls for an immediate ceasefire, instead backing a “sustainable” cessation of hostilities.
But international pressure has mounted on Israel as they appear to plan a ground offensive in Rafah, where around 1.5 million Palestinians have sought refuge from Israel’s military offensive.
Lord Cameron said: “We are calling for a stop to the fighting right now, we think that what we need is a pause in the fighting and the hostages to come out and aid to go in. That should happen straight away.
“Then what we need to do is turn that pause into a permanent, sustainable ceasefire.
“Lots of things will have to happen in order for that to be the case and for fighting not to resume.
“We are going to have to see Hamas leaders leave Gaza, we are going to have to see the machinery of terrorism taken down, we are going to have to see a proper horizon for the Palestinian people, a new Palestinian government,” he added.
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“But let’s make that happen, let’s have the stop to the fighting now, have that hostage release and then build on it from here. That’s what we need to happen rather than an offensive in Rafah.”
Mr Netanyahu has brushed off international calls to halt his country’s military offensive and vowed to “finish the job”.
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During his visit to the Falklands, Lord Cameron also said he hoped the people living on the islands would want to stay British “forever” as he insisted a drive to improve relations with Argentina would not come at their expense.
Speaking in the capital Stanley, he played down suggestions from the Argentinian president Javier Milei that there could be a negotiation on the future of the UK overseas territory.
