The leaders of France, Germany and Britain said yesterday that “there can be no further delay” in negotiating a ceasefire in Gaza, warning Iran and its allies against any “further escalation” of the conflict.
The joint statement came after one of the deadliest reported Israeli strikes on the besieged Gaza Strip in more than 10 months of offensive.
“The fighting must end now, and all hostages still detained by Hamas must be released,” French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a joint statement.
“The people of Gaza need urgent and unfettered delivery and distribution of aid,” the statement said. “There can be no further delay.”
They also welcomed the “tireless” work of Egyptian, Qatari and US mediators towards an agreement on a ceasefire and the release of hostages.
Several rounds of negotiations for a ceasefire in Gaza have failed until now, except for a one-week truce that was observed at the end of November.
International mediators have invited Israel and Hamas to resume negotiations towards a long-sought truce and hostage-release deal, as the fighting in Gaza and the killings of Iran-aligned militant leaders have sent tensions soaring across the region, reports AFP.
Hamas later on Sunday called on US, Qatari and Egyptian mediators to implement a ceasefire plan for Gaza put forward by US President Joe Biden, instead of holding “more negotiations”.
In their statement, the three European leaders also urged Iran and its allies “to refrain from attacks that would further escalate regional tensions and jeopardise the opportunity to agree a ceasefire and the release of hostages.”
Tens of thousands of Palestinians have been forced to flee the enclave’s Khan Younis and sleep on sidewalks and streets elsewhere in the enclave, without food or water as the Israeli forces began new offensive.
Israeli attacks killed at least 25 Palestinians across Gaza in the past 24 hours. The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said yesterday that at least 39,897 people have been killed in the Israeli offensive, now in its 11th month.
Nasser Hospital has received the bodies of people killed in Israeli strikes on Khan Younis, which came after it ordered mass evacuations in the southern Gaza city.
The Associated Press said its journalist counted the bodies at the hospital and saw funeral prayers being held yesterday morning.
The Israeli military has adjusted its closed zone around the Gaza fence after a new assessment, an army statement said.
According to the order, new areas are prohibited from entry without prior coordination with the Israeli military. These closed zones include farm fields between the Beit Hanoon crossing (known as Erez to Israelis), Yad Mordechai, Shaar HaNegev junction, Nativot junction and Nahal Oz.
