David Cameron has met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog during a visit to Israel, following the announcement of a truce in the war with Hamas.
The former prime minister, who arrived in Israel amid uncertainty about when the pause in the fighting will begin, expressed hope that it could be an “opportunity to crucially get hostages out and get aid into Gaza”.
Speaking as he met with Mr Netanyahu, Lord Cameron said he wanted all parties to the agreement to “make it happen”.
The agreement for a four-day ceasefire in Gaza appeared to have hit a last-minute snag. A senior Israeli official said it would not take effect before Friday, a day later than originally expected.
The deal will see the release of hostages held by Hamas in Gaza, with Palestinian prisoners expected to be freed by Tel Aviv.
The lull in the fighting is also expected to clear the way for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza to ease the suffering of citizens who have been bombarded and besieged by Israel as it takes on Hamas in response to the October 7 atrocities.
Lord Cameron, who earlier visited Kibbutz Be’eri, scene of some of the worst violence during the Hamas assault, said: “There is never any excuse for this sort of hostage-taking.
“All the hostages should be released, but I hope that everyone who is responsible and behind this agreement can make it happen, to bring relief to those families, including, of course, there are British nationals who have been taken hostage.”
Mr Netanyahu promised to “continue with the goals of the war and we will eradicate Hamas”.
“There is no hope for peace between Israel and the Palestinians and between Israel and the Arab countries if we do not eradicate this murderous movement, which threatens the future of all of us,” he told the Foreign Secretary.
Meeting Mr Herzog, the ex-prime minister said it was “very good” to be back in Israel.
“There’s a huge amount of trauma in Israel because of the taking of 244 hostages. I’m not sure anyone can fully understand and share that trauma, but I remember the worst days of being prime minister was when British hostages were taken in Syria, and so many of them lost their lives in the most gruesome, terrible fashion.
“I remember the effect that had on me as prime minister and thinking about that and so perhaps know a tiny bit of what your nation is going through.”
This morning, together with @elicoh1, I visited Kibbutz Be’eri, one of the communities affected by the appalling terror attack Israel suffered on 7 October.
— David Cameron (@David_Cameron) November 23, 2023
I wanted to come here to see it for myself; I have heard and seen things I will never forget.
Today is also a day where… pic.twitter.com/2dU4gbeaIE
Lord Cameron’s visit comes a day after he met counterparts from Arab and Islamic countries – including the Palestinian Authority – at Lancaster House in London to discuss the Middle East crisis.
Foreign ministers from Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Indonesia and Nigeria, as well as the secretary general of the League of Arab States, and the ambassador of Qatar, attended the event.
Lord Cameron said the group discussed how to use the planned pause in the Israel-Hamas fighting to consider “how we can build a peaceful future which provides security for Israel but also peace and stability for the Palestinian people”.
But until the truce is implemented, Israel has said it will continue to target Hamas in Gaza.