‘I grieve with you and stand with you’; British PM visits Israel

British prime minister Rishi Sunak landed in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Thursday morning to meet his counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu and President Herzog.

He wrote on X (formerly Twitter), “I am in Israel, a nation in grief. I grieve with you and stand with you against the evil that is terrorism. Today, and always.”

I am in Israel, a nation in grief.

I grieve with you and stand with you against the evil that is terrorism.

Today, and always.

סוֹלִידָרִיוּת pic.twitter.com/DTcvkkLqdT

— Rishi Sunak (@RishiSunak) October 19, 2023

During his meeting with Herzog, he said that it is vital to provide humanitarian aid to Gaza, stating, “Palestinians are victims of what Hamas has done. It’s important that we continue to provide humanitarian access,”

He, nonetheless, stressed on his full support to Israel to “defend” itself, “to bring security back” in the country to its people, and “to ensure the safe return of the hostages that have been taken”.

As per reports of the meeting by Al Jazeera, “The Prime Minister and President Herzog stressed the imperative need to avoid further escalation of violence in the region. They agreed to continue working together to that end.”

Later, PM Netanyahu, during his meeting with his British counterpart, said Hamas’ attack on October 7 was carried out to “destroy Israel’s regional peace moves in the region”.

PM Sunak stated that the UK will provide increased aid to the region.

“I’m proud to stand here with you in Israel’s darkest hour. As your friend, we will stand with you in solidarity, we will stand with your people, and we also want you to win,” Sunak said.

In a short press conference, PM Netanyahu said, “This is not merely our battle, it’s the battle of the entire civilised war, the battle of Israel, the battle of moderate Arab countries, the battle of the free world, the battle for the future,

“We have two forces – one is an axis of evil run by Iran and supported by Hezbollah, Hamas and others that want to bring back the Middle East to the Middle Ages … to the age of war and slavery.

“The other forces [are those] of progress and humanity who want to push for a world of peace and prosperity.”

PM Rishi Sunak will depart for Saudi Arabia today to meet Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.