David Lammy has said he hopes to see a hostage deal emerge “in the coming days” and called for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza during his first trip to Israel and the Palestinian territories as foreign secretary.
The newly-appointed minister met Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Monday after having talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian Authority PM Mohammad Mustafa on Sunday.
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In his meeting with Mr Herzog, the Labour frontbencher said he was using “all diplomatic efforts” to help bring about the release of the remaining hostages held by Hamas.
Mr Lammy said: “I hope that we see a hostage deal emerge in the coming days.
“And I am using all diplomatic efforts, indeed last week with the G7 nations and particularly with [US secretary of state Antony Blinken] Tony Blinken, pressing for that hostage deal.
“And I hope too that we see a ceasefire soon and we bring an alleviation to the suffering and the intolerable loss of life that we’re now seeing also in Gaza.”
Mr Lammy also met families of hostages murdered or held in Gaza by Hamas.
Photos shared on social media showed him embracing and shaking hands with those affected.
They included the family of Tamir Adar, who was killed by Hamas, and whose body is being held in Gaza.
Mr Lammy with the family of Tamir Adar. Pic: Haim Zach GPO
The foreign secretary also announced the UK will provide another £5.5m this year to UK-Med to fund its work in the Gaza Strip.
The medical aid charity sends experienced humanitarian medics, including those working in the NHS, to crisis-hit regions.
The funding will be used to support the ongoing work of its field hospitals and the emergency department at Nasser Hospital.
Mr Lammy’s visit comes after Israel’s latest strike on Gaza, which killed at least 90 people in the south of the territory.
The Israelis say the attack targeted Hamas’s military commander, Mohammed Deif, but it was not known whether he was among the dead.
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Amnesty International UK said Mr Lammy’s trip was “an early test” of the Labour government’s “commitment to international law”.
The conflict in Gaza has proved a thorn in Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer’s side since it began last October.
Many Labour voters feel he has been insufficiently critical of Israel and a number of ministers resigned last year after the party was initially slow to back calls for a ceasefire.
While Labour won a landslide victory at the general election, former MP Jonathan Ashworth was one of several Labour candidates defeated by Independents who made Gaza a major part of their campaign, while others such as Health Secretary Wes Streeting saw their majorities slashed.
Israel launched its operation in Gaza following the 7 October Hamas attack, which saw around 1,200 people killed and about 250 taken hostage.
Mr Netanyahu has said Israel will continue its war until all the hostages have been released and Hamas has been destroyed.