Foreign Secretary David Lammy visited Israel again this weekend, with his French counterpart Stéphane Séjourné, as ceasefire talks brokered by the US, Qatar and Egypt have gotten underway.
The foreign secretary said Israeli ministers had told him “they hope we are on the cusp of a deal”.
He added that “the time for a deal for those hostages to be returned, for aid to get in in the quantities that are necessary in Gaza, and for the fighting to stop, is now.”
The trip came after Lammy warned about Iranian escalation in the region, he said that “the risk of the situation spiralling out of control is rising. Any Iranian attack would have devastating consequences for the region.”
The trip was the first joint UK-France visit to Israel in more than a decade. The pair met Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz and Minister of Strategic Affairs of Israel Ron Dermer, as well as visiting the West Bank, where they met with Palestinian Authority leaders.
