RISHI Sunak has demanded the immediate release of all women and children held by Hamas as as the war in Gaza resumed in full force after the week-long truce.
The Prime Minister said the collapse of the truce was “deeply disappointing” but that he hoped the Qatar-led mediation efforts could resume.
He insisted the Government wanted all hostages to be released but that in this initial phase “all women and children should be freed”.
His comments came during a press conference at the Cop28 climate summit in Dubai, during which he also revealed the UK’s plans to explore alternative routes for delivering aid to Gaza.
He stressed “not enough” was reaching Gaza via Rafah and other border crossings.
Israel restarted combat operations in the Gaza Strip minutes after a temporary truce expired on Friday, blaming Hamas for breaking the ceasefire.
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The Prime Minister said: “We want all hostages released, and in this initial phase all women and children should be freed.
“I’ve said before that the number of civilian casualties and the scale of suffering has been far too high, so the return of hostilities is concerning to us all.
While he reiterated his support for Israel’s right to defend itself and pursue Hamas, he said he was “making it clear that Israel must take maximum care to protect civilian life” and supported civilian protection plans set out by US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.
He said: “We’re opposed to anything that would involve the mass displacement of people. We need to ensure that there are viable, designated areas where safety can be guaranteed and we need to ensure that critical infrastructure like water supplies and hospitals are protected.”
Mr Sunak added that the need to protect civilians had been a “consistent theme” of his discussions with regional leaders during the Dubai summit.
On aid, he said: I strongly welcomed the pause in fighting to get hostages out and we’ve been using the opportunity to get more aid into Gaza.
“The UK has trebled its aid but still not enough is getting in via Rafah and other crossings.
“So we are actively exploring other routes including by sea.”
