The foreign ministers of Germany, France, and the United Kingdom on Friday called for an immediate return to the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.
“The resumption of Israeli strikes in Gaza marks a dramatic step backward for the people of Gaza, the hostages, their families and the entire region,” said a joint statement published on the UK government’s website.
“We are appalled by the civilian casualties and urgently call for an immediate return to a ceasefire.”
The joint statement comes as Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz threatened to occupy further areas of the Gaza Strip, in a bid to put more pressure on the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
The longer Hamas refuses to release hostages, the more territory it will lose to Israel, Katz said on Friday, according to his office. It said he had instructed the army to call on the local population to flee in this case.
No details were given as to how territory would be seized, though some Israeli media reported areas would be annexed.
On Tuesday, Israel launched a new massive wave of airstrikes on Gaza, shattering a fragile ceasefire in place since January.
The resumption of Israeli airstrikes comes two months after Israel and Hamas reached a ceasefire deal that included the release of hostages taken during the October 7, 2023, attacks in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.
“We call on all parties to re-engage with negotiations to ensure the ceasefire is implemented in full and becomes permanent,” the foreign ministers of Germany, France, and the UK said in their joint statement.
“This must include Hamas releasing the hostages that they have cruelly detained and persistently refuse to release.”
