Britain’s Sunak Tells Israel PM: ‘We Want You To Win’ In War With Hamas
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
JERUSALEM (Worthy News) – British Prime Minister Rushi Sunak said Thursday that Britain stands with Israel in its “darkest hour” and wants the Jewish nation to win its declared war against Hamas. “I am proud to stand here with you in Israel’s darkest hour as your friend,” he told his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, the capital. “We will stand with you in solidarity, we will stand with your people, and we also want you to win,” Sunak stressed.
“In the last two weeks, this country has gone through what no country should go through,” he said, referring to the killing of 1,400 people in Israel by Hamas militants and the kidnapping of hundreds more, including Israeli-British nationals. “We fully support Israel’s right to defend itself; I know that you are taking extra care and trying to reduce harm to civilians.”
He spoke as the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said they continued to strike the Gaza Strip. They claimed to have killed the head of the military branch of the ‘Popular Resistance Committees’ in Rafah, Rafat Harb Hussein Abu Hilal.
A Hamas-aligned news agency also said an Israeli strike killed the head of the Hamas-led national security forces, Jehad Mheisen, and his family at home.
Local media reported that Israel intensified bombing over different parts of Gaza overnight, killing “dozens” of Palestinians. The IDF claimed they massively targeted “Hamas infrastructure” over the past 24 hours.
Its air campaign reportedly struck anti-tank missile launch sites, tunnels, and militant headquarters. Israel blocked cross-border supplies of water, electricity, and fuel but said it would allow humanitarian support from Egypt for civilians but not for Hamas fighters.
HOSPITAL STRIKE
Britain’s Sunak was also in Israel following tensions over a rocket strike hitting a church-run Gaza hospital that local officials claim killed 471 people.
Israel says a rocket misfired by Islamic Jihad caused the tragedy, and video footage monitored by Worthy News seemed to back up those claims. Hamas blames Israel for the “horrific massacre.”
However, “I know that you are taking every precaution to avoid harming civilians in direct contrast to the terrorists of Hamas, which seeks to put civilians in harm’s way,” Sunak said, standing alongside Netanyahu in Jerusalem.
“Can I also say that we have seen the scenes over the past day that have shocked all of us, particularly at the hospital, and we mourn the loss of every innocent life – civilians of every faith, every nationality who have been killed,” Sunak stressed.
“And we also recognize that the Palestinian people are victims of Hamas too.”
He welcomed Israel’s decision to allow supplies of water, electricity, and fuel into Gaza from Egypt for civilians but not for Hamas fighters. “Palestinians are victims of what Hamas has done. It’s important that we continue to provide humanitarian access,” Sunak said in separate remarks when meeting Israel’s president.
DARKEST HOUR
Prime Minister Netanyahu told Sunak that “the Western world stood with you 80 years ago during your darkest hour; this is our darkest hour.” Netanyahu said that the shocking October 7 attack on Israel by Hamas gunmen aimed to prevent the expansion of its peaceful relations in the Middle East. He asked Britain to keep supporting the Gaza counter-offensive. “We were on the cusp of expanding that peace, and destroying that move was one of the reasons why this action was taken,” Netanyahu said.
Sunak met Netanyahu as confirmation came that British-Israeli man and father-of-two Yonatan Rapoport, was murdered by Hamas in the attack on Kibbutz Be’eri on October 7.
Also confirmed dead are an Israeli woman and her 12-year-old granddaughter. Carmela Dan, 80, and her 12-year-old granddaughter, Noya Dan, were taken prisoner in Kibbutz Nir Oz. Israel did not say where the bodies were found.
In a message on social platform X, Israel said: “We are devastated to announce that Noya and her grandmother Carmela’s bodies were discovered yesterday. Thank you to all of you who shared her story to help us bring her home. Our hearts are broken.”
Israel said at least more than 200 hostages are now known to have been taken by Hamas. Sunak praised Israel’s efforts to find the hostages, including British nationals. His visit came a day after U.S. President Joe Biden arrived in Israel as sirens wailed, warning of incoming rockets from Gaza and Lebanon.
Sunak’s next stop was Saudi Arabia, another Middle East nation concerned about rising tensions in Israel.
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