The British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, has expressed his support for Israel and the Jewish community in the UK amidst the ongoing Israel-Hamas war. In a statement released on Saturday, Sunak emphasized the UK’s commitment to assisting Israel in restoring its security. He condemned the “horror and barbarism unleashed in Israel” by the Hamas terrorist group and affirmed the UK’s unwavering support for Israel and the British Jewish community. Sunak stated that this support would be enduring, not just for the present moment but for always.
The statement was made as the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) prepared to launch an offensive against Hamas. Amnesty International UK’s Chief Executive, Sacha Deshmukh, commended the Prime Minister’s criticism of Hamas for their cruel and brutal crimes against Israeli civilians. However, Deshmukh also expressed concern that Sunak did not mention the civilian casualties among Palestinians resulting from Israel’s retaliatory airstrikes. Deshmukh pointed out that Israel’s bombing campaign in Gaza had led to the deaths of at least 1,900 people and injuries to over 8,000, amounting to a war crime.
The conflict between Israel and Hamas began when Hamas launched thousands of missiles towards Israel and seized Israeli villages. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu informed President Joe Biden that hundreds of people, including children, had been massacred, women brutally raped and murdered, and hostages, including children, taken by the terrorists. Witnesses reported gruesome scenes in communities attacked by Hamas, including decapitated and burnt bodies.
According to the Israeli Health Ministry and the IDF, over 1,300 Israelis, including soldiers, were killed, and thousands more were injured. On the other hand, the Gaza Health Ministry, controlled by Hamas, claimed that 2,329 people in Gaza had been killed. The exact number could not be verified by The Epoch Times. The IDF has advised civilians in Gaza City to evacuate as they plan to target Hamas’s underground tunnels. However, it has been challenging for vulnerable individuals such as children, pregnant women, and the sick to leave. The United Nations and other charities have called on Israel not to target essential facilities, but the IDF spokesperson has claimed that Hamas uses hospitals and U.N. buildings as command centers.
In a conversation with Netanyahu, PM Sunak urged him to protect ordinary Palestinians and ensure humanitarian aid reaches them. The Israeli Embassy’s spokesperson in the UK, Orly Goldschmidt, asserted that Israel was not targeting civilians but acknowledged that innocent people would inevitably suffer as casualties of the war against Hamas. Hamas, considered a terrorist group in multiple countries, gained control of Gaza in 2007 and employs violent attacks against Israelis, viewing them as occupiers of Palestinian territory.