Lamy stated in his remarks that “What is happening in Gaza is not a natural disaster but a man-made famine,” emphasizing the need to send humanitarian aid to the region and allow international organizations to operate. He added, “We continue to work with our regional partners to enable the United Nations to deliver aid to those in need in Gaza,” continuing, “We cooperate with international organizations to transport the wounded and injured from Gaza to receive treatment in the United Kingdom.” The British Foreign Minister urged the Israeli government to agree to evacuate the wounded and injured from Gaza for treatment abroad, stressing the need to reach a ceasefire in Gaza and release all hostages. Israel resumed its bombardment of the Gaza Strip on March 18th, after a nearly two-month cessation, specifically since the ceasefire agreement with Hamas began on January 19th, following stalled negotiations to extend the first phase of the agreement or move to its second phase. The ceasefire agreement between Israel was supposed to continue once the first phase was extended, which ended on March 1st, or enter its second phase, but disagreements between Israel and “Hamas” over the next steps prevented this.
On his part, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov expressed Moscow’s concern over the escalation in the Gaza Strip and the casualties among civilians, affirming that Moscow is closely monitoring the situation and looks forward to returning to the path of peace.
