The UK and Germany support a “sustainable ceasefire” in Gaza, the two countries’ foreign secretaries said on Saturday.
David Cameron and Annalena Baerbock put pressure on Israel to do more to avoid civilian casualties in its war against Hamas, saying “too many civilians have been killed.”
The remarks came after President Joe Biden’s White House expressed unease about the failure of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s administration to reduce civilian casualties and its plans for the future of Gaza.
But Lord Cameron and Ms. Baerbock also stressed they are not calling for a general and immediate ceasefire and “hoping it somehow becomes permanent.”
The ministers said leaving Hamas in power in Gaza “would be a permanent roadblock on the path to a two-state solution.”
Writing in The Sunday Times, Lord Cameron and Ms. Baerbock said they “support a ceasefire, but only if it is sustainable.”
The foreign secretaries said the UK and Germany have supported the recent humanitarian pauses and been pushing for further humanitarian pauses “to get more aid in and more hostages out.”
“But let us be clear. We do not believe that calling right now for a general and immediate ceasefire, hoping it somehow becomes permanent, is the way forward,” the article reads.
Unless Hamas releases the hostages and lays down its arms, “an unsustainable ceasefire, quickly collapsing into further violence, would only make it harder to build the confidence needed for peace,” the ministers said. They also said Hamas shouldn’t be allowed to continue its rule in Gaza.
“We cannot expect Israelis to live alongside those dedicated to repeating the horrors inflicted by Hamas. And we cannot expect Palestinians to live among those who endanger them by lurking under their homes, schools, and hospitals,” they said.
Turning to what can be done to “pave the way to a sustainable ceasefire,” the ministers said, “we must get more aid to ordinary Palestinians” and that all partners, “our Arab partners, in particular,” need to work together towards a solution.
They also warned Israel to “do more to discriminate sufficiently between terrorists and civilians.”
“Israel has the right to defend itself but, in doing so, it must abide by international humanitarian law,” the ministers said. “Israel will not win this war if its operations destroy the prospect of peaceful coexistence with Palestinians.”
“They have a right to eliminate the threat posed by Hamas. But too many civilians have been killed. The Israeli government should do more to discriminate sufficiently between terrorists and civilians, ensuring its campaign targets Hamas leaders and operatives.”
The shift in language by the UK government comes as Mr. Netanyahu faces public anger after it emerged that the three hostages who were mistakenly shot by Israeli troops in the Gaza Strip had been waving a white flag and were shirtless when they were killed.
In a nationwide address on Saturday, the Israeli prime minister said the killings “broke my heart, broke the entire nation’s heart,” but he indicated no change in the country’s military campaign.
“We are as committed as ever to continue until the end, until we dismantle Hamas, until we return all our hostages,” he said.
For Labour, shadow health secretary Wes Streeting told “Sunday Morning with Trevor Phillips” programme on Sky News: “The question isn’t whether any of us want a ceasefire, of course people want to see a ceasefire, an end to this bloody conflict.”
Mr. Streeting said there have been “intolerable losses” in Gaza, adding: “The question is how do you get from where we are today to where we want to be.
“I think David Cameron talked about a sustainable ceasefire and I think that’s absolutely right,” he said.
Mr. Streeting pointed to the previous humanitarian pause, adding: “I think we’ve just got to keep in mind a ceasefire comes about when both parties to the conflict are able to negotiate a ceasefire.
“We’ve got to build a political path to that point and then beyond.”
The Israel-Hamas war has lasted for ten weeks since Hamas terrorists attacked Israel, killing over 1,100 and taking more than 240 hostages.
According to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and Hamas terrorists, at least 18,800 people have been killed in Gaza during the war.
