UK prime minister gives reason why Sinwar should not be mourned
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer has broken the silence on the killing of the Hamas leader, saying “no one should mourn the death of Hamas leader (Yahya) Sinwar”.
Speaking in Berlin, Starmer says: “On his hands is the blood of innocent Israelis, killed on 7 October and over years of terror. And also the blood of Palestinian people who suffered in the chaos and violence that he sought and celebrated.”
He re-affirmed his support Israel’s right to self-defence but stressed that there is “no military solution – the answer is diplomacy” to the ongoing war.
“Now we must make the most of this moment… a ceasefire in Gaza, immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, immediate access to humanitarian aid and a return to the path towards the two-state solution,” Starmer says.
Sounding a note of warning to Israel, he says “the world will not tolerate any more excuses on humanitarian assistance”, adding the UN Relief and Works Agency (Unrwa) must be allowed to continue its work.
Meanwhile, Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni has arrived in Lebanon’s capital Beirut to meet the country’s Prime Minister Najib Mikati.
Speaking at a press conference, Mikati says they discussed the conflict in southern Lebanon and agreed that a “diplomatic solution must come before war, violence and destruction, and is represented first by Israel’s full commitment to a ceasefire”.
