UK PM Rishi Sunak to visit Israel on Thursday as war escalates

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will arrive in Israel on Thursday as part of a two-day visit to the Middle East and is set to call for efforts to avoid a further escalation of the conflict.

During the visit, Sunak will meet with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog and will push for humanitarian aid, including a boost in aid provided by the UK, to be allowed into Gaza. Sunak will visit other countries in the region afterward to meet with counterparts across the Middle East.

Before departing for Israel, Sunak stated "Every civilian death is a tragedy. And too many lives have been lost following Hamas's horrific act of terror. The attack on al Ahli hospital should be a watershed moment for leaders in the region and across the world to come together to avoid further dangerous escalation of conflict. I will ensure the UK is at the forefront of this effort."

The British prime minister referenced the explosion at al-Ahli hospital on Wednesday, telling lawmakers "We should not rush to judgements before we have all the facts," according to Sky News.

"Our intelligence services have been rapidly analyzing the evidence to independently establish the facts. We are not in a position at this point to say more than that."

UK foreign secretary to visit Middle East in coming days

UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who visited Israel last week, is set to meet with leaders in Egypt, Turkey, and Qatar in the coming days.

"It is in no one's interests - neither Israeli, Palestinian nor the wider Middle East - for others to be drawn into this conflict," said Cleverly on Thursday, according to Sky News. "I am meeting counterparts from influential states in the region to push for calm and stability, facilitate humanitarian access into Gaza and work together to secure the release of hostages."

Reuters contributed to this report.