UK joins 27 nations calling for Israel to end war in Gaza as Lammy condemns 'inhumane drip feeding' of aid

David Lammy has joined foreign ministers from 24 other countries in urging Israel to let aid into Gaza, as they called on the war to "end now".

It comes as the government still faces criticism for supplying parts for F-35 fighter jets to Israel, amid calls to stop providing arms to the country.

The Foreign Secretary and counterparts from 24 other nations including Australia, Canada and France, plus the EU commissioner for equality, urged the Israeli government to "immediately lift restrictions on the flow of aid".

They also described proposals to move 600,000 Palestinians to a so-called "humanitarian city" in Rafah as "completely unacceptable".

These plans, which eventually aim to have all of Gaza’s almost two million people living in the tiny zone, have been likened to a ‘concentration camp’, including by former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert.

In a statement shared on Monday afternoon, the foreign secretaries said: "The suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths.

Read more: Israeli forces launch ground assault on Deir al-Balah in central Gaza for first time

Read more: Colombian man found guilty of murdering couple and dumping their remains in suitcases on Clifton Suspension Bridge

"The Israeli government's aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity. We condemn the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food."

They said it is "horrifying" that hundreds of Palestinians "have been killed while seeking aid" and that the "Israeli government's denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable".

It comes as the UN food agency accused Israel of using tanks, snipers and other weapons to fire on a crowd of Palestinians seeking food aid, in what the territory's Health Ministry said was one of the deadliest days for aid-seekers.

The World Food Programme (WFP) condemned the violence that erupted in northern Gaza as Palestinians tried to reach a convoy of trucks carrying food, which Israel then reportedly opened fire on.

The Health Ministry in Gaza said at least 80 people were killed in the incident. The Israeli military questioned the death toll, but said it fired warning shots "to remove an immediate threat”.

The sustained attacks on Palestinians waiting to receive much-needed aid have been condemned globally, as Israel has been accused of using starvation as a weapon of war.

Jasmine El-Gamal, former Middle East Adviser to the US Department of Defence under Barack Obama, told LBC's Andrew Marr: "What we're seeing in Gaza, obviously it really is a case of trying to squeeze the entire population of Gaza into a small of an area as possible, deprive that area of food, medical supplies and water and force the population to have to leave or else be killed.

"That is basically the pattern that we've been seeing over the last several months.

"And those are all the eyewitness accounts that we've been seeing from people on the ground and people who've been there, including doctors and humanitarian workers."

Ms El-Gamal said the UK, US and other countries calling for Israel to end the war need to use their influence over Netanyahu to achieve a ceasefire.

"I don't really think it's about influence. I think it's about the willpower and the political will to use that influence," she said.

"The US obviously is the largest arms supplier, the largest supporter, the largest political cover on the international stage to Israel. The EU is Israel's largest trading partner. That's huge leverage, that's huge influence.

"So it's not that they don't have it, Andrew, it's that they so far have refused to use it. And that's something that really boggles the mind because when we see a four year old child yesterday dying of starvation, her name was Razan Abu Zaher, when there are hundreds of trucks on the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing ready to enter Gaza, you really have to wonder what's happened to the state of the world."

Sir Keir's government faced criticism from the Labour chairwoman of the Commons International Development Committee over the continued supply of parts for the F-35 fighter jet to Israel.

Sarah Champion said: "Alongside 25 other countries, the UK has issued a statement condemning Israel's actions in Gaza and the West Bank but failed to provide concrete actions on how they will be held to account.

"The committee's recent report on upholding international law, and our challenge on F-35 components, both give the Government practical tools to compel Israel to meet its obligations as an occupying nation."

Lammy and the other foreign ministers also reiterated calls for the remaining people being held hostage by Hamas to be released and asked for "all parties to protect civilians and uphold the obligations of international humanitarian law".

Earlier this month Israeli defence minister Israel Katz laid out plans for the "humanitarian city" in Rafah, Gaza's most southern city which has been heavily damaged through the war.

He reportedly said that the military would initially move 600,000 Palestinians there, with the aim of eventually transferring the whole population to Rafah.

"Proposals to remove the Palestinian population into a 'humanitarian city' are completely unacceptable," the foreign ministers said on Monday.

"Permanent forced displacement is a violation of international humanitarian law."

The signatories also pledged that they would be "prepared to take further action to support an immediate ceasefire".

Lammy later told MPs Israel is "tarnishing" its reputation by ignoring calls from Britain and other nations to end the devastating war, after it dismissed international accusations over its actions in Gaza.

He said Palestinians have been subject to a "grotesque spectacle" and a "litany of horrors," adding: "I utterly condemn the killing of civilians seeking to meet their basic needs.

"I firmly believe the Israeli government's actions are doing untold damage to Israel's standing in the world, and undermining Israel's long-term security."

At the Commons Liaison Committee, Sir Keir Starmer restated his view that the situation in Gaza is "intolerable".

The Prime Minister told MPs: "The situation on the ground in Gaza is intolerable on so many levels and we make that absolutely clear in all our exchanges with Israel and with other countries.

"Whether that's the deaths of those that are queuing for aid, whether it's the plans to force Palestinians to live in certain areas or be excluded from certain areas, they are all intolerable and absolutely wrong in principle."