British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Sunday met President Isaac Herzog in Paris and told him that "immediate steps" need to be taken towards a ceasefire in Gaza.
“The pair reiterated their commitment to maintaining the historic friendship between Israel and the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister expressed his condolences for the deaths of the five hostages kidnapped on October 7th, whose bodies have recently been recovered from Gaza,” said a statement from Starmer’s office.
“The Prime Minister reiterated his ongoing support for Israel’s right to self-defense in accordance with international law. He was clear that there is no moral equivalence between Israel, a democratic state, and Hamas, a terrorist organization,” it added.
Starmer also said “there must be immediate steps towards a ceasefire, so that hostages can be released and more humanitarian aid can get in for those in desperate need,” the statement continued.
“The two leaders committed to continuing their close partnership in key areas of collaboration such as trade and investment,” it concluded.
British Foreign Secretary David Lammy recently called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza as he made a visit to Israel and the Palestinian Authority.
Lammy said the ongoing war in Gaza is “intolerable” and stressed in meetings with Israeli and PA leadership that Britain wants to assist with diplomatic efforts “securing a ceasefire deal and creating the space for a credible and irreversible pathway towards a two-state solution.”
Lammy, who replaced David Cameron following Labour's landslide victory in the recent UK general election, reiterated after being named to the role his support for international efforts to secure an "immediate ceasefire" in the Israel-Hamas war and for the release of remaining hostages.
He later told Reuters that Britain wants a balanced position on the war in the Middle East and will use diplomatic efforts to ensure a ceasefire is reached and hostages held by Hamas are released.