UK PM Rishi Sunak in Israel for talks to prevent war escalation

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak landed in Israel on Thursday for a twoday visit to the Middle East to hold talks with regional leaders in an effort to prevent further escalation of conflict and push for humanitarian aid for civilians in Gaza amid the ongoing crisis in the regionldquoI am in Israel a nation in grief I grieve with you and stand with you against the evil that is terrorism Today and alwaysrdquo Sunak tweeted as he landed in Tel AvivI am in Israel a nation in griefI grieve with you and stand with you against the evil that is terrorismToday and always pictwittercomDTcvkkLqdTmdash Rishi Sunak RishiSunak October 19 2023The British Indian leaders visit to Israel follows that of US President Joe Biden as world leaders step up efforts to prevent the conflict with Hamas from spilling into the wider region following the unprecedented attack on Israel on October 7 by Hamas militants in GazaWhile in Israel Sunak will meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog to offer his condolences for the civilians killed in the conflict before embarking on a visit to other major capitals in the Middle East for further talksldquoAbove all Im here to express my solidarity with the Israeli people You have suffered an unspeakable horrific act of terrorism and I want you to know that the United Kingdom and I stand with yourdquo he told reporters on his arrival in IsraelIn an earlier statement the British Prime Minister said the Tuesday attack on the Al Ahli hospital in Gaza should be a ldquowatershed momentrdquo for the world Every civilian death is a tragedy And too many lives have been lost following Hamass horrific act of terrorrdquo he saidldquoThe attack on Al Ahli Hospital should be a watershed moment for leaders in the region and across the world to come together to avoid further dangerous escalation of conflict I will ensure the UK is at the forefront of this effort he saidSunaks visit comes as other European leaders also undertake similar tours of the Middle East in a show of Western unityThe US UK Germany France and Italy form part of the socalled Quint a diplomatic collective who have presented a united front over the actions of Hamas in Israel and GazaSunaks visit coincides with that of his Foreign Secretary James Cleverly who began a multicountry visit across the Middle East on Thursday night as part of efforts to help prevent the conflict from spreading across the region and to work towards a peaceful resolutionCleverly is planning to meet senior leaders in Egypt Turkiye and Qatar over the next three days where he will discuss coordination on efforts to avoid a spillover in violence which would devastate the wider regionldquoIt is in no ones interests ldquo neither Israeli Palestinian nor the wider Middle East ldquo for others to be drawn into this conflict I am meeting counterparts from influential states in the region to push for calm and stability facilitate humanitarian access into Gaza and work together to secure the release of hostagesrdquo said CleverlyThe UK Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office FCDO said the trip has been planned to countries which are vital to international efforts to uphold regional stability free hostages and allow humanitarian access to Gaza with all three vital interlocutors in the Middle EastThe UK Foreign Secretary will discuss the urgent need for the Rafah crossing to open so that lifesaving aid can reach those who need it and for Hamas to release the hostagesldquoThe UK remains committed to mitigating the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza and calling for international humanitarian law to be respected while standing alongside the people of Israel against the terrorist group Hamasrdquo the FCDO saidThe UK said its key focus is on pushing for an agreement on humanitarian access to Gaza the release of British hostages and foreign nationals and securing safe passage for British Nationals to leave GazaIsrael is likely to launch a possible ground invasion of Gaza against Hamas for its unprecedented attack on the country that killed more than 1400 people About 200 people are being held as captives in Gaza by Hamas militantsIn turn Israeli strikes on Gaza have killed at least 2778 people Another 1200 people across Gaza are believed to be buried under the rubble alive or dead health authorities in Gaza saidThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever