UK Foreign Secretary visits Egypt, Jordan to promote Gaza ceasefire

CAIRO - 20 December 2023: British Foreign Secretary David Cameron will visit Egypt and Jordan this week to push for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza and to secure the release of all prisoners and increase humanitarian aid to the region.

Cameron, who will be accompanied by UK Minister of State for the Middle East Lord Tariq Ahmad, will meet with Egyptian and Jordanian leaders to discuss the latest developments in the conflict.

"I am going to the region this week for my second visit to push for efforts to deliver aid to Gaza and release the remaining prisoners," Cameron said. "In terms of aid, I will seek to build on Israel's decision to open the Kerem Shalom crossing to ensure that more aid and fuel reaches Gaza through as many channels as possible."

In a joint article with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, Cameron called for a "permanent ceasefire" between Israelis and Palestinians.

The article, published in the British newspaper The Times, stated that the two politicians shared the view that "this conflict cannot go on forever" and called for an end to the cycle of violence.

"Our goal cannot simply be to end the fighting today," the two wrote. "The goal must be a lasting peace for days, years and generations. That is why we support a ceasefire, but only if it is sustainable."

Cameron, a member of the Conservative Party, and Baerbock, who is part of Germany's Green Party, said the need for a "sustainable ceasefire" was "urgent" and they hoped it would lead to "lasting peace."

They also stressed that Israel must comply with international humanitarian law and said that the regional and international calls for a ceasefire in the Palestinian territories go beyond being a understandable reaction to such severe suffering.

The two politicians concluded by saying that they shared the view that this conflict cannot go on forever, which is why they supported the latest humanitarian ceasefire.