UPDATE - Israel ‘extremely grateful’ for UK support: President Herzog

ADDS REMARKS; REVISES HEADLINE, DECK, LEDE

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - Israel’s president expressed his country's pleasure Thursday for the support of the UK and said he is "extremely grateful," amid escalating tension in the region.

Isaac Herzog met British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Jerusalem and said the visit came at the "darkest hour" and it is a "test ... for who's our friend, who's with us."

The Israeli president criticized the BBC for not calling Hamas a terror organization.

"The way the BBC characterizes Hamas is distortion of the fact."

He also noted that Palestinian and Israeli people deserve peace: "We believe that both nations deserve peace."

"You've been with us from first moment and we are extremely grateful prime minister, for your support and your decisions," he said.

Sunak expressed his solidarity with the president after Israel suffered "something unspeakable."

"We will stand with you, in solidarity with your people and your right to defend yourself, to bring security back to your country to your people, to ensure the safe return of the hostages that have been taken," he said.

Sunak also thanked Herzog for Israeli support that has been provided to British nationals caught up in the attacks.

"The Prime Minister and President Herzog agreed on the importance of getting urgent humanitarian support to ordinary Palestinians in Gaza who are also suffering," according to a statement by Sunak's Office.

The visit comes amid a massive Israeli air campaign on the Gaza Strip, taking many civilian lives, following a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, into Israeli border towns.

The conflict in Gaza, which has been under Israeli bombardment and blockade since 2007, began Oct. 7 when Hamas initiated Operation Al-Aqsa Flood -- a multi-pronged surprise attack that included a barrage of rocket launches and infiltrations into Israel by land, sea and air.

Hamas said the incursion was in retaliation for the storming of the Al-Aqsa Mosque and growing violence by Israeli settlers.

The Israeli military then launched Operation Swords of Iron against Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip.

Gaza is experiencing a dire humanitarian crisis, with electricity cut off, while water, food, fuel, and medical supplies are running out.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urged an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” to ease the “epic human suffering.”

Sunak’s visit comes after an Israeli airstrike Tuesday on a hospital in Gaza that killed at least 471 victims.

US President Joe Biden’s visit to Israel on Wednesday was seen by some international observers as tacit support for the airstrike, though Biden said the deaths left him “deeply saddened.” He echoed Israel’s claim that the Israeli military had not bombed the hospital.

At least 3,478 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks on Gaza. The death toll in Israel stands at more than 1,400.