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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Tuesday, three days after Royal Air Force fighter jets helped protect the Jewish state from an Iranian air attack.
British officials said the two leaders spoke on Tuesday afternoon, more than 24 hours after Sunak told the House of Commons that he would speak “shortly” to Netanyahu.
A Downing Street spokesperson said Sunak had “reiterated the UK’s unwavering support for Israel’s security and wider regional stability”, but added that “a significant escalation was not in the cards”. interest of no one and would only worsen insecurity in the Middle East.
“It was time to calm down again,” he said.
Sunak also told Netanyahu that the UK “remains seriously concerned” about the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, telling him that Israel “should open new aid routes as quickly as possible”.
In the call, the Israeli leader thanked the United Kingdom for its “swift and robust” support during Iran’s “reckless and dangerous” attack on Saturday.
Netanyahu faces considerable domestic pressure to reject calls from the UK, US and EU to show restraint after the Iranian attack.
Its far-right coalition allies are demanding massive retaliation against Iran, even as Israel’s Western allies urge caution and restraint to avoid regional war.
Like Sunak, Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron, who is expected to visit Israel on Tuesday evening to meet his Israeli counterparts, made clear that Britain opposed any further action. “We are making it very clear that we do not support a retaliatory strike,” he said Monday.
Netanyahu spoke with US President Joe Biden the night of the attack, in which a US-led coalition of warplanes, including several British, destroyed dozens of drones and missiles heading towards Israel.
The Israeli prime minister also spoke with Republican House Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise, who offered his full support to Netanyahu, according to the prime minister’s office.
Scalise changed the U.S. legislative calendar to “consider legislation that supports our ally Israel,” a reference to a $14 billion military aid package stalled in Congress.
Contrary to the position of the United Kingdom and other Israeli allies, the congressman also “expressed support for any decision made by Israel in light of the Iranian attack,” Netanyahu’s office said.
The Iranian attack, the first launched directly from its territory against Israel, came in response to a suspected Israeli strike this month on its consulate in Damascus, which killed several senior Iranian commanders.
