Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
British Foreign Secretary David Cameron has expressed “deep concern” over Israel's anticipated military offensive in Rafah, where more than 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering.
In a meeting with Israeli war cabinet minister Benny Gantz, Mr Cameron “made clear the steps Israel must take” in getting aid to Gaza. The 30-minute meeting in London was described by officials as direct and to the point.
Palestinians were “facing a devastating and growing humanitarian crisis”, Lord Cameron said in a Foreign Office statement after the meeting on Wednesday.
He also discussed the crisis in Gaza in separate talks with Qatar's Prime Minister, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani.
The meeting focused on "efforts for reaching an immediate ceasefire in the strip, protecting civilians, and ensuring continued and unhindered flow of humanitarian aid", a Qatari statement said.
With Mr Gantz, Mr Cameron likewise discussed efforts to secure a humanitarian pause to ensure Israeli hostages were returned home and life-saving supplies were delivered to Gaza.
“I made clear the steps Israel must take to increase aid into Gaza, and the UK's deep concern about the prospect of a military offensive in Rafah. These are tough but necessary conversations,” he said on X.
“I once again press Israel to increase the flow of aid,” Mr Cameron said. “We are still not seeing improvements on the ground. This must change.”
A pause in the fighting would need to be followed by increased distribution of aid through land and maritime routes, as well as critical items for repairing infrastructure.
“The UK is also deeply concerned about the prospect of a military offensive in Rafah,” Mr Cameron said.
He warned that, as the occupying power in Gaza, Israel has a legal responsibility to ensure aid is available for civilians.
“Responsibility has consequences including when we as the UK, assess whether Israel is compliant with international humanitarian law.”
Latest from the Israel-Gaza war – in pictures
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Displaced Palestinians hold a white flag as they pass an Israeli tank position while fleeing the Hamad Town district of Khan Younis. Bloomberg -
A Palestinian woman cuts material to be used for sewing nappies at a workshop in Rafah. AFP -
Smoke rises following an explosion in Gaza, as seen from southern Israel. AP -
Parachutes carrying relief for Palestinians drop from an Egyptian Air Force cargo plane over central Gaza. Bloomberg -
A Palestinian boy who is suffering from malnutrition is treated at a healthcare centre amid widespread hunger. Reuters -
Palestinian children attend an English class in the library of the school housing displaced people in Rafah, the southern Gaza Strip. AFP -
An UNRWA-run school housing displaced Palestinians in Rafah. AFP -
Palestinians search for bodies and survivors in the rubble of a residential building destroyed in an Israeli air strike in Rafah. AP -
A wounded Palestinian man who lost his wife and daughter walks past a neighbours' house destroyed by Israeli bombing in Rafah. AFP -
An injured man is rescued from the rubble after an Israeli air strike on the Rafah camp in Gaza. EPA -
Palestinians walk amid the rubble of houses destroyed by the Israeli bombardment of Gaza city. AFP -
Aid is dropped into Gaza from US military aircraft. Reuters -
Palestinians gather at air lorries in Gaza. More than 100 were killed when Israeli troops opened fire. AP -
The sun sets behind destroyed buildings in Gaza. AFP -
A Palestinian man enters a heavily damaged house following an Israeli strike in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP -
A wounded Palestinian is assisted at the site of an Israeli strike in Deir Al Balah, in the central Gaza Strip. Reuters -
Palestinians gather in the hope of getting bags of flour carried by air lorries near an Israeli checkpoint in Gaza city, as the enclave's residents face crisis levels of hunger. Reuters -
Palestinian children wait to receive food cooked by a charity kitchen as the conflict between Israel and Hamas continues in Gaza. Reuters -
A displaced Palestinian child holds a crying baby in a camp in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. Reuters
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak also met Mr Gantz later in the day to discuss the urgent need for a humanitarian pause in Gaza, getting far more aid in and bringing the hostages safely home.
The former defence minister is seen as most likely to succeed Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if his far-right coalition collapses.
Mr Gantz, leader of the centrist National Unity Party, has seen his popularity rise in recent polls, gaining three times more approval than Mr Netanyahu, whose support has dropped over his handling of the Israel-Gaza war.
Gantz defies Netanyahu after Washington visit
Mr Gantz’s decision to defy Mr Netanyahu and travel to Washington, where he met Vice President Kamala Harris, and London may show fissures in the fragile Israeli war cabinet.
“It means that Gantz has decided that there's no point in hiding or camouflaging the deep differences that are in the war cabinet,” Dan Avnon, a professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, told The National.
Israel's Benny Gantz visits Washington as rumours swirl of a rift with Benjamin Netanyahu – video
The visit adds to growing speculation that Israel’s closest allies are increasingly frustrated with Mr Netanyahu’s intransigence on the Gaza war, particularly regarding the desperate need to distribute more humanitarian aid in the strip.
US President Joe Biden's administration has come under increasing pressure at home and abroad to curtail Israel's war efforts.
