We want this conflict to end as soon as possible: UK foreign secretary on Gaza

By Burak Bir

LONDON (AA) - The British foreign secretary on Wednesday said they don't want the conflict in Gaza to go on "for a long moment," expressing the need for an "immediate humanitarian pause."

"We want this conflict to end as soon as possible. We don't want it to go on for a long moment, longer than necessary," David Cameron said in a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

He asserted that the important question is whether there is some way of turning that pause into the sustainable cease-fire.

But for this, Cameron claimed, one would have to see the Hamas leadership leaving Gaza, where Israel has killed more than 24,000 people since the Oct. 7 Hamas offensive. Around 1,200 Israelis are believed to have been killed in the initial Hamas attack.

"I think that should be the approach we try to take. Let's get this pause in place, get the aid and get the hostages out, get that hostage negotiation done and see if we can turn that into sustainable cease-fire," he said.

Elaborating why he stressed the term sustainable, Cameron noted that just stopping fighting will "never get a two-state solution," as a two-state solution cannot be reached with Hamas in Gaza able to launch rockets on Israel.

The UK has faced criticism by pro-Palestinian voices and organizations for failing to call for a cease-fire in Gaza.

The US has proposed a revitalized Palestinian Authority to take charge in Gaza once the conflict is over, unifying its administration with the West Bank.