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Leaders of UK, France, and Germany on Friday jointly called for an immediate end to the war in Gaza, urging Israel to lift restrictions on humanitarian aid and uphold international law.
In a joint statement released by the German government, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, French President Emmanuel Macron, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz emphasized that the most basic needs of Gaza’s civilian population—such as access to food and water—must be met without delay.
“We call on the Israeli government to immediately lift restrictions on the flow of aid and urgently allow the UN and humanitarian NGOs to carry out their work in order to take action against starvation,” the statement read. It also condemned the withholding of humanitarian assistance as “unacceptable,” stressing Israel’s obligation to comply with international humanitarian law.
The Gaza Strip has been under an aid blockade since March, which Israel partially eased two months later. However, international agencies report that the distribution of supplies remains limited, especially after Israel sidelined the UN-led aid coordination system.
The statement concluded their joint statement by urging all parties to reach an immediate ceasefire and commit to a political process that can ensure long-term peace and security for both Palestinians and Israelis.
“We stand ready to take further action to support an immediate ceasefire and a political process that leads to lasting security and peace for Israelis, Palestinians and the entire region,” they said.
Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Starmer announced that he held an emergency call with President Macron and Chancellor Merz to discuss the ongoing crisis and the need for coordinated international response.
More than 100 humanitarian and rights organizations warned this week that “mass starvation” is spreading across Gaza. The World Health Organization has described the crisis as “man-made.”
Since May 27, the United Nations has recorded over 1,000 Palestinians killed while trying to access food, a figure highlighted by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in a speech to Amnesty International’s Global Assembly on Friday.
“Let me repeat: 1,000 people—killed not in combat, but in desperation—while the entire population starves,” Guterres said, adding that “words don’t feed hungry children.” He urged immediate and permanent ceasefire, the unconditional release of all hostages, and unrestricted humanitarian access.
Over the past 24 hours, Gaza’s Health Ministry reported nine additional starvation-related deaths, bringing the total to 122. Separately, the UN confirmed that at least 294 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since June 30 while seeking humanitarian aid.
Guterres warned that the situation in Gaza has escalated beyond a humanitarian disaster and now constitutes a “moral crisis” that tests the global conscience. In his virtual address, he condemned “the relentless Israeli onslaught on Gaza” and noted that the level of destruction is without precedent in recent times.
“The scale and scope are beyond anything we have seen in recent times,” he said, expressing frustration over what he described as widespread international indifference.
According to Guterres, even UN personnel in the field report feeling “neither dead nor alive,” while children express a wish to “go to heaven because, at least, there is food there.”
As of Friday, Gaza’s Health Ministry reported 59,676 Palestinians killed since Israel launched its military campaign following Hamas’s October 7, 2023 cross-border attack, which resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people in Israel, most of them civilians, according to official figures.
Of the 251 hostages taken during the Hamas assault, 49 remain in Gaza, including 27 who are presumed dead, according to the Israeli military.
In November 2023, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, citing alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Gaza. Separately, Israel faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice.
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