Rishi Sunak is “deeply concerned” about a potential Israeli offensive in the city of Rafah in the south of Gaza.
It comes after Israel’s military told Palestinians to leave parts of the city, with the announcement appearing to signal a long-threatened Israeli ground invasion is imminent.
Speaking on Monday, Mr Sunak said: “I’ve been very consistent that we are deeply concerned about the prospect of a military incursion into Rafah, given the number of civilians that are sheltering there and the importance of that crossing for aid.
“I’ve made those points repeatedly to Prime Minister Netanyahu.
“The priority right now should be on all parties, but particularly Hamas, to agree to a deal to release hostages and allow more aid to go in as part of a temporary pause, which will allow us to build a sustainable ceasefire.
“That’s the best way to end the suffering. And that’s what I continue to call on all parties to do.”
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has said an Israeli offensive “must not go ahead”, while shadow foreign secretary David Lammy called for an “immediate ceasefire” and said an Israeli offensive in Rafah “would be catastrophic”.
Israel says Rafah is the last significant Hamas stronghold but had previously paused plans to attack the city in southern Gaza so hostage release negotiations could take place.
However, Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant claimed on Sunday that Hamas was not serious about a deal and the army was preparing “a powerful operation in the very near future in Rafah”.
On Sunday, Hamas set off rockets from Rafah towards Kerem Shalom, Israel’s main crossing point for delivering aid, killing three Israeli soldiers.
Overnight, Israeli strikes killed at least 19 people, including a baby, according to Palestinian health officials.
Image: A house in Rafah was hit by Israeli strikes overnight. Pic: Reuters
Israel’s army has told about 100,000 people to evacuate eastern Rafah to a humanitarian zone designated by Israel on the Mediterranean coast.
Rafah, Gaza’s most southern city, on the Egyptian border, is where more than a million people – more than half of Gaza’s population – have taken refuge during the war that began last October.
Joining other Western nations and humanitarian organisations in urging Israel not to strike Rafah, Sir Keir said on social media: “With more than a million Palestinian civilians sheltering in Rafah, an Israeli offensive must not go ahead.
“There must be an immediate ceasefire, the immediate release of all hostages, and unimpeded aid into Gaza that can be delivered regularly, quickly and safely.”
Charity ActionAid said forcing Palestinians from Rafah “without a safe destination is not only unlawful but would lead to catastrophic consequences”.
They said “there are no safe zones in Gaza” and aid workers have seen some of the “most severe conditions in recent memory” with widespread disease, starvation and chaos.
Image: People in eastern Rafah were told to move to al Mawasi, an Israeli-declared humanitarian area near the coast
Madeleine McGovern, from Care International UK, said ministers need to urgently suspend licences for arms sales to Israel to prevent an expansion of military operations in Rafah.
“It would be unconscionable for British-made weapons to be used in an assault on Rafah,” she said.
Islamic Relief warned the area where Palestinians have been ordered to move, al Mawasi, is not safe and that forcing more people there will make the humanitarian crisis worse.
When TV cameras are let in to film world leaders meeting in person, the resulting footage is usually incredibly boring for journalists and incredibly safe for politicians.
Put through a total of almost 90 minutes of televised questioning alongside the American leader, it was his diciest encounter with the president yet.
But he still just about emerged intact.
For a start, he can claim substantive policy wins after Trump announced extra pressure on Vladimir Putin to negotiate a ceasefire and dialled up the concern over the devastating scenes coming from Gaza.
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There were awkward moments aplenty though.
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Image: The two leaders held talks in front of the media. Pic: Reuters
On green energy, immigration, taxation and online regulation, the differences were clear to see.
Sir Keir just about managed to paper over the cracks by chuckling at times, choosing his interventions carefully and always attempting to sound eminently reasonable.
At times, it had the energy of a man being forced to grin and bear inappropriate comments from his in-laws at an important family dinner.
But hey, it stopped a full Trump implosion – so I suppose that’s a win.
My main takeaway from this Scotland visit though is not so much the political gulf present between the two men, but the gulf in power.
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Trump gives Putin new deadline to end war
Sir Keir flew the length of the country he leads to be the guest at the visiting president’s resort.
He was then forced to sit through more than an hour of uncontrolled, freewheeling questioning from a man most of his party and voters despise, during which he was offered unsolicited advice on how to beat Nigel Farage and criticised (albeit indirectly) on key planks of his government’s policy platform.
In return he got warm words about him (and his wife) and relatively incremental announcements on two foreign policy priorities.
So why does he do it?
Because, to borrow a quote from a popular American political TV series: “Air Force One is a big plane and it makes a hell of a noise when it lands on your head.”
With Amazon and Walmart exploring stablecoins, institutions may be underestimating potential exposure of customer data on blockchains, posing risks to privacy and brand trust.
The European Central Bank may rely on regulated euro stablecoins and private innovation to counter the dominance of US dollar stablecoins, says adviser Jürgen Schaaf.