The Prime Minister said the UK is doing ‘everything we can to ensure security’ of Britons after suggestions they could be among Hamas hostages.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said Israel has “every right to defend itself” from Hamas attacks but stressed that civilian safety must be “paramount in our minds”.
Mr Sunak also said the UK was doing “everything we can to ensure the security of British citizens” after the Defence Secretary said it seemed “very likely” that there are British hostages in Gaza.
Speaking to the media after talks with allies in Sweden, Mr Sunak highlighted how he had urged Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, during a conversation late on Thursday that caution was needed to “protect civilians” during its operation against Hamas militants that massacred hundreds of Israelis on Saturday.
According to the United Nations, Israel’s military has told some one million Palestinians living in the north of Gaza to evacuate ahead of an expected ground invasion.
The international body has warned that so many people fleeing en masse would be calamitous.
The Prime Minister told broadcasters at the Joint Expeditionary Force summit in Gotland, Sweden: “Of course we should always — and we are always — having concerns of civilians paramount in our minds.
“It is something I’ve discussed with Prime Minister Netanyahu myself and underlined with what the secretary of state from the United States (Antony Blinken) and the president (Joe Biden) have said, that of course Israel should take every possible precaution to protect civilians as they exercise their rightful ability to defend themselves against attacks like this.”
Mr Blinken, during a visit to Israel this week, said it “matters” how Israel chooses to defend itself and pressed for civilians not to be harmed.
The war has claimed at least 2,800 lives on both sides since Hamas launched an incursion on October 7, with Israel placing the 25-mile Gaza Strip under siege and subjecting it to a torrent of retaliatory air strikes.
Hamas said Israel’s heavy bombardment killed 13 hostages, including foreigners, held by the group.
Defence Secretary Grant Shapps told ITV’s Good Morning Britain he would treat Hamas’s claim with “caution” but “deep concern”.
Three Britons are confirmed to have lost their lives during the weekend’s assault on Israel but reports have suggested at least 17 could be among the casualties.
The Prime Minister said: “We are working very closely with the Israeli authorities and in contact with families to provide all the possible support that we can.
“We are increasing our military teams across the region and making sure that we are doing everything we can to ensure the security of British citizens.”
He said the Royal Navy ships he has sent to the eastern Mediterranean — part of a package of military support for Israel announced before his trip to Sweden — would be able to provide humanitarian assistance to those caught up in the conflict.
Royal Fleet Auxiliary vessels Lyme Bay and Argus have been deployed to the region, along with Royal Air Force surveillance aircraft and a company of Royal Marines.
