France, Germany and Britain support calls for a ceasefire in Gaza

The leaders of France, Germany and Great Britain have backed calls for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the return of hostages being held by Hamas - the group designated a terrorist organization by the US and the EU.

In a joint press release on Monday, they supported the latest effort by the United States, Qatar and Egypt to broker a deal to end the now ten-month war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.

Mediators have been trying for months to get the parties to agree to a three-phase plan under which Hamas would release the remaining Israeli hostages in exchange for the release of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails, as well as Israel's withdrawal from Gaza.

"The fighting must stop now, and all hostages still being held by Hamas must be released. It is an urgent need for the people of Gaza for the aid to be delivered unimpeded and immediately," the communiqué states.

The communiqué was signed by French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer.

Last week, the leaders of the United States, Egypt and Qatar called on Israel and Hamas to meet for talks on August 15, either in Qatar or Doha, to finalize an agreement.

Israel has said it will send its own negotiators to attend that meeting.

Hamas initially said it was considering the offer, but has now hinted it may not participate if the talks are not based on US President Joe Biden's plan.

Recently, the risk of a wide war in the Middle East has also increased, after the assassination in Tehran of the political leader of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, as well as the senior military commander of Hezbollah, Faud Shukr, in Beirut.

Hamas has accused Israel of killing Haniyeh. Israel has not claimed responsibility, but neither has it denied it.

Iran and Hamas have vowed to retaliate against Israel for the killing of Haniyeh in Tehran.

Israel says its aim is to destroy Hamas, after the October 7 attack, in which militants from Gaza swept into southern Israel and killed 1,200 people and kidnapped around 250 others.

After a round of exchanges in November, Israel says a further 111 hostages are being held in Gaza, including the dead bodies of 39 hostages.

Israel's war in Gaza has since left nearly 40,000 Palestinians dead and more than 91,700 wounded, according to health officials in the enclave.

More than 1.9 million of pre-war Gaza's total population of 2.3 million have been forced to flee their homes, constantly moving across the small territory to escape the war./ REL