British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will arrive in Israel on Thursday amid the war in Hamas.
Sunak will land in Israel on Thursday at 9:00 a.m. and will hold meetings with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog, before heading to “a number of other regional capitals,” his office said in a statement late on Wednesday night.
The BBC reported that the British Prime Minister will offer his condolences for the civilians killed in the deadly Hamas attacks.
He will also press for humanitarian aid to be delivered to Gaza as soon as possible.
"Every civilian death is a tragedy," the Prime Minister said ahead of the trip. "And too many lives have been lost following Hamas's horrific act of terror."
“The 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 added.
There had been reports earlier this week that Sunak was planning his first trip to Israel, but he did not confirm his travel arrangements until Wednesday evening.
Sunak’s visit to Israel follows visits from US President Joe Biden and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, who were in Israel this week in a show of solidarity with the Jewish state.
Earlier on Wednesday, Sunak told journalists they should treat statements from Hamas with the same distrust as those from the Russian Government, following Hamas’ claim that Israel was responsible for an explosion at a Gaza hospital.
While international media was quick to believe Hamas and blame Israel for attacking the hospital, the IDF on Wednesday presented proof that the explosion was a result of a failed rocket launch by the Islamic Jihad.
On Wednesday, Conservative former minister Stephen Crabb told the Commons, “Last night, sections of the British media were reporting as fact that it was Israeli rockets that had landed and attacked the al Ahli hospital, relying on information supplied by terrorist-controlled Gaza.”
“The headlines have since been rewritten but the outpouring of Jew-hate on social media overnight was vile. So would the Prime Minister please make the point again that the way that this conflict is being reported has massive implications for our Jewish community and that any information coming from Hamas must be treated with a degree of scrutiny and cross-examination that is sadly sometimes lacking?” he added.
Sunak then replied, “He is absolutely right that we should not rush to judgment before we have all the facts on the appalling situation that we saw yesterday, particularly given the sensitivities that he raises, the impact on communities here, but also across the region.”
“As I said, it is incumbent on all of those in positions of responsibility in this House and outside in the media to recognize that the words we say will have an impact and we should be careful with them,” added the Prime Minister.
After reiterating that the UK is working with allies to establish the truth about what happened, Sunak added, “He is right to point out in the same way as that we don’t treat what comes out of the Kremlin as the gospel truth, we should not do the same with Hamas.”
Last week, Sunak attended a vigil for the victims of the Hamas attacks on Israel at Finchley United Synagogue in north London.
Speaking at the service, Sunak told those in attendance that he stands with them in solidarity.
The British Prime Minister said his first duty is to protect the UK's Jewish community, and he "will stop at nothing" to keep them safe. He also said the words “Am Yisrael Chai” (the nation of Israel lives) in Hebrew.