LONDON, Oct 19, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will
travel to Israel on Thursday before heading to other countries in the region
in an effort to deescalate the Israel-Gaza conflict, his office has said.

"The attack on Al Ahli Hospital should be a watershed moment for leaders in
the region and across the world to come together to avoid further dangerous
escalation of conflict," Sunak said in a statement.

"I will ensure the UK is at the forefront of this effort."

Sunak will stress the international community must "not let Hamas' barbaric
terrorism and disregard for human life become a catalyst for further
escalation of conflict in the region", the statement said.

Expected in Israel early on Thursday morning, Sunak is due to meet his
counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu and Israeli President Isaac Herzog.

He is also expected to insist that humanitarian aid, which London recently
announced would be increased for the Palestinians, be allowed to arrive at a
time when Israel has authorised the entry of aid into Gaza from Egypt, and
that Britons stranded in Gaza be allowed to leave.

Alongside the British prime minister's trip, his Foreign Secretary James
Cleverly is due to visit Egypt, Turkey and Qatar "in the coming days",
according to Downing Street.

London has pledged its support for Israel following the bloody attacks by
Hamas, which killed more than 1,400 people, and has announced that the UK's
humanitarian aid to the Palestinians will be increased by a third -- an extra
œ10 million pounds ($12 million).

Israel is relentlessly bombing the small, crowded territory of Gaza, where
more than 3,400 people have been killed, most of them Palestinian civilians,
according to the local authorities.