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Middle East crisis live: ‘It’s clear the Israelis are making a decision to act,’ says UK foreign secretary
UK foreign secretary Cameron: ‘clear the Israelis are making a decision to act’
Speaking to reporters in Israel, the UK’s foreign secretary David Cameron has said “It’s clear the Israelis are making a decision to act,” and that “We hope they do so in a way that does as little to escalate this as possible.”
Reuters reports he also said that the UK wanted to see new sanctions Iran, saying “They need to be given a clear unequivocal message by the G7.”
He said he was in Jerusalem to “show solidarity after that appalling attack by Iran”, saying:
It’s right to have made our views clear about what should happen next, but it’s clear the Israelis are making a decision to act. We hope they do so in a way that does as little to escalate this as possible. And in a way that, as I said yesterday, is smart as well as tough. But the real need is to refocus back on Hamas, back on the hostages, back on getting the aid in, back on getting a pause in the conflict in Gaza.
While in Israel Cameron is expected to meet prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders, as well as visiting the occupied West Bank. Cameron will then travel from the Middle East on to the G7 foreign ministers meeting in Italy.
Key events
Qatar PM: Gaza ceasefire and hostage release talks at ‘delicate phase’
Qatari prime minister and foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Wednesday talks on a Gaza ceasefire and a release of hostages are at a “delicate phase”.
“We are trying as much as possible to address this stumbling block,” Reuters reports he added, without giving further details.
Qatar has frequently sounded upbeat about the prospects for a deal, but negotiations have been carrying on for months since the collapse of the first temporary pause in fighting and release of some hostages in November last year.
Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has reiterated the Russian position on the need for de-escalation in the Middle East, and said Russia was in contact with both Iran and Israel.
President Vladimir Putin spoke with his Iranian counterpart yesterday, and Reuters reports Peskov said Russia continues to have close contacts with Iran and also has constructive contacts with Israel.
He declined to comment when asked if Iran had notified Russia of its intention to attack Israel ahead of time.
Here are some more pictures from Iran’s army day parade in Tehran, which was attended by president Ebrahim Raisi. The parade included equipment as well as a truck bearing an anti-US message.
Palestinian news agency Wafa reports that Israel has “intensified airstrikes on Gaza City and the central Gaza Strip, killing dozens and injuring others with various wounds, amid widespread property destruction.”
It said a Wafa correspondent reported that six people were killed and a number of others wounded when Sheikh Radwan Market, north of Gaza City, was bombed.
The claims have not been independently verified.
Iran’s president Ebrahim Raisi will visit Pakistan “very soon”, prime minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday, Reuters reports. The two countries exchanged missile strikes in January, with each claiming it was targeting separatist militants based inside their neighbour.
Israel’s president Isaac Herzog has thanked the UK foreign secretary David Cameron and Germany’s foreign secretary Annalena Baerbock for visiting Israel, and posted to social media to say they had a “warm discussion”.
Herzog said:
Thank you for both the UK and Germany’s strong stand alongside Israel in the face of the reprehensible attack by Iran. The whole world must work decisively and defiantly against the threat posed by the Iranian regime which is seeking to undermine the stability of the whole region.
Israel is unequivocal in its commitment to defending its people. The immediate return home of all the hostages held in captivity by Hamas in Gaza remains for us – and the international community – a top priority, while we continue to advance and dramatically upgrade humanitarian aid to the civilian population.
In its latest update yesterday, the UN’s agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa, said “There has been no significant change in the volume of humanitarian supplies entering Gaza or improved access to the north. Since the beginning of April, an average of 181 aid trucks have crossed into Gaza per day via the Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) and Rafah land crossings. This remains well below the operational capacity of both border crossings and the target of 500 trucks per day.”
Israel’s military offensive in the Gaza Strip has killed at least 33,899 Palestinians and wounded 76,664 more since 7 October, according to the latest figures from the heath ministry there.
Reuters reports that the Hamas-led health ministry said 56 Palestinians had been killed and 89 injured in the past 24 hours. It has not been possible for journalists to independently verify the casualty figures being issued during the conflict.
UK foreign secretary Cameron: ‘clear the Israelis are making a decision to act’
Speaking to reporters in Israel, the UK’s foreign secretary David Cameron has said “It’s clear the Israelis are making a decision to act,” and that “We hope they do so in a way that does as little to escalate this as possible.”
Reuters reports he also said that the UK wanted to see new sanctions Iran, saying “They need to be given a clear unequivocal message by the G7.”
He said he was in Jerusalem to “show solidarity after that appalling attack by Iran”, saying:
It’s right to have made our views clear about what should happen next, but it’s clear the Israelis are making a decision to act. We hope they do so in a way that does as little to escalate this as possible. And in a way that, as I said yesterday, is smart as well as tough. But the real need is to refocus back on Hamas, back on the hostages, back on getting the aid in, back on getting a pause in the conflict in Gaza.
While in Israel Cameron is expected to meet prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders, as well as visiting the occupied West Bank. Cameron will then travel from the Middle East on to the G7 foreign ministers meeting in Italy.
Lorenzo Tondo
Lorenzo Tondo is in Palermo for the Guardian
Italy has ramped up security measures at key locations, dispatching more than 400 police officers to Capri as the picturesque island prepares itself to host the G7 talks on Wednesday amid escalating tensions triggered by the recent Iranian drone and missile strike on Israel.
Authorities have established a red zone in Capri, focusing on the iconic luxury hotel Quisisana, where a significant portion of the meetings will take place and where Oscar Wilde stayed after his release from Reading gaol.
Access points have been set up in the city centre, with checks on residents and workers. Diplomats and G7 ministers, expected to arrive in Capri early Wednesday afternoon, will reach the island aboard naval patrol boats. Some will arrive by helicopter.
Following Iran’s attack on Israel, interior ministry sources emphasised the threat of so-called lone wolves to Italy’s national security. They underscored the ongoing focus on irregular migration flows to identify potentially risky individuals, with continued controls at the eastern border in place.
The Middle East crisis and terrorism alarm for Europe will be central topics during the G7 talks. Foreign ministers from the seven countries will discuss new sanctions against Iran in the aftermath of the Israel attack. Antonio Tajani, the Italian foreign minister, highlighted Italy’s willingness to consider new sanctions against individuals implicated in actions against Israel.
He suggested that any new measures would be focused on individuals rather than whole nations.
“If we need to have more sanctions for people clearly engaged against Israel, supporting for example terrorism, supporting Hamas, it is possible to do it. But we need to be very serious and to work all together,” Tajani told Reuters.
Tajani called the Iranian attack a “big mistake” for Tehran but “positive” for Israel as it had revealed the efficiency of its air defences that shot down most of the drones and missiles with help from the US, Britain, France and Jordan.
Tajani also reiterated that Italy was firmly opposed to any Israeli invasion of the southern Gaza city of Rafah and repeated his call for a ceasefire, while also calling on Hamas to set free all the hostages it took during the 7 October attack.
“All together we want to protect Israel, but we want to achieve stability and peace,” he said. “We are friends of Israel, but we want to work for peace, including via the possible sending of troops if a Palestinian state is to be created, along with forces from other countries”.
Dorsa Jabbari, reporting from Tehran for Al Jazeera, has some extra detail on how Iran’s army day has been broadcast in Iran. She writes:
The Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi spoke two hours ago but his words were not broadcast live. What we’ve seen over the past few minutes is a videotaped feed of the president’s speech. The event in the past was held outside Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini’s mausoleum in Tehran. But because of security concerns, it was moved to a military base east of the capital this year.
Iranian president Ebrahim Raisi on Wednesday said that the slighest aggresion by Israel on Iran’s soil would trigger a “powerful and fierce blow”.
The remarks, reported by Iran’s state news agency IRNA, were made during a parade for Iran’s national army day. It quoted Raisi saying “The army stands by the nation and acts to defend the homeland, territorial integrity, and the values of the Islamic Revolution.”
The Times of Israel notes that the location of the parade has moved from its usual location without explanation, and it was not broadcast live on state TV as it has been in the past.
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