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UK Seeks Balanced Position on Israel and Gaza, Says New Foreign Minister Lammy
Britain’s newly appointed Foreign Secretary David Lammy leaves Downing Street, following the results of the election, in London, Britain, July 5, 2024. Photo: REUTERS/Toby Melville
Britain wants a balanced position on the war in the Middle East and will use diplomatic efforts to ensure a ceasefire is reached and hostages held by Palestinian terror group Hamas are released, its new foreign minister David Lammy told Reuters.
Lammy is on a visit to Germany, his first international trip following the Labour Party’s thumping victory in Britain’s election on Friday, which ended 14 years of Conservative government and propelled Keir Starmer to power as prime minister.
“The time has come for the United Kingdom to reconnect with the outside world,” Lammy said in an interview in Berlin.
“I want to get back to a balanced position on Israel and Gaza. We’ve been very clear that we want to see a ceasefire… We want to see those hostages out.”
He added: “The fighting has to stop, the aid has got to get in, and I will use all diplomatic efforts to ensure that we get to that ceasefire.”
Lammy did not elaborate.
The Labour Party suffered significant election setbacks in areas with large Muslim populations in the election on Friday amid discontent over its position on the war in Gaza, despite a landslide victory in the parliamentary vote.
Efforts to secure a ceasefire and hostage release in Gaza gathered momentum on Friday after Hamas made a revised proposal on the terms of a deal, and Israel said negotiations would continue into next week.
Lammy also said Britain would seek to reset its position globally on issues including the climate crisis as well as key relationships, such as with European and emerging powers.
“Let us put the Brexit years behind us … there’s much that we can do together,” Lammy said, pointing to a previously floated idea of a UK-EU security pact.
Lammy will on Sunday travel to Poland and Sweden, where he will focus discussions on areas including cooperation on NATO and the war in Ukraine, Britain’s foreign office said.
The post UK Seeks Balanced Position on Israel and Gaza, Says New Foreign Minister Lammy first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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Iran Signals Willingness to Scale Back Uranium Enrichment to Ease Tensions
Atomic symbol and USA and Iranian flags are seen in this illustration taken, September 8, 2022. Photo: REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
i24 News – Iran may be prepared to significantly reduce its uranium enrichment levels in a bid to stave off renewed UN sanctions and limit the risk of further strikes by Israel and the United States, according to a report published Sunday in The Telegraph.
Citing Iranian sources, the paper said Tehran is considering lowering enrichment from 60% to 20%.
The move is reportedly being championed by Ali Larijani, the newly appointed secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, who is holding talks with regime leaders.
“Larijani is trying to convince the system to reduce the level of enrichment in order to avoid further war,” a senior Iranian official told the paper.
The proposal, however, faces stiff resistance from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, which has long opposed concessions on the nuclear program. Still, the report suggests Iran’s leadership may be open to greater flexibility, including the possibility of reviving engagement with Western powers.
Last month, i24NEWS reported exclusively that a delegation from the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is expected to travel to Iran. The team of technical experts would seek to resume monitoring of nuclear sites, inspections that have been heavily restricted in recent years.
The development comes amid mounting regional tensions and could represent a critical turning point in the long-running nuclear standoff.
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Major Brush Fire Erupts Near Jerusalem, Evacuations Underway
A view of the new Tel Aviv-Jerusalem fast train seen over the HaArazim Valley (“Valley of Cedars”) just outside of Jerusalem, Sept. 25, 2018. Photo: Yossi Zamir/Flash90.
i24 News – A large brush fire broke out Sunday in the Cedars Valley area, near Route 1 and the Motza interchange, prompting an emergency response from Jerusalem district fire services. Several water-bombing planes were dispatched, and authorities have declared a “fire emergency.”
As a precaution, residents of Mevaseret Zion are being evacuated. Access to the town from Route 1 has already been blocked, and officials are weighing a full closure of the major highway.
Fire crews from the Ha’uma station are on site working to contain the flames, while motorists in the area are urged to heed traffic updates and follow instructions from emergency services.
Eight firefighting aircraft are currently operating above the blaze in support of ground teams. The fire comes amid one of the hottest, driest summers on record, with conditions fueling a series of destructive wildfires across the country.
Officials warn the situation remains critical, as the blaze threatens a vital transportation corridor leading into Jerusalem.
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Egyptian Army Reinforces Its Eastern Border Ahead of Israel’s Gaza City Takeover
A man sits against a wall with a graffiti of a heart with the word “Gaza”, near the Rafah border crossing, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah, Egypt, Feb. 11, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Amr Abdallah Dalsh
i24 News – The Egyptian army has reinforced its presence on the eastern border, fearing the humanitarian and military repercussions of the IDF’s takeover of Gaza City as authorities remain on high alert, Qatari media outlet Al-Araby Al-Jadeed reported Sunday.
According to the report, Egyptian authorities estimate that Israeli military operations will force roughly one million Gazans to flee Gaza City toward the southern part of the Strip, creating the opportunity for Israel to attempt to deliberately push these refugees toward the Egyptian border.
Cairo fears that Israel will force Gazans south — only as a temporary stop — before taking advantage of the chaos of the operation to push them further towards the Rafah crossing, bordering Egypt’s North Sinai.
According to the report, Egypt intends to send two messages with its reinforced military presence on the border: the first a stand against an attempted crossing breach, and the second against the idea of a humanitarian solution at the expense of its territory.