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Israeli-Palestinian conflict

UK top diplomat to discuss ceasefire with Israeli, Palestinian leaders

According to the Foreign Office, Dominic Raab will meet Israeli Foreign and Defence Ministers, Gabi Ashkenazi and Benny Gantz, as well as Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh and Foreign Minister Riad Malki during his one-day visit

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali

UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab

© AP Photo/Alberto Pezzali

LONDON, May 26. /TASS/. UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab will meet with Israeli and Palestinian leaders on Wednesday to discuss ways to strengthen the ceasefire, the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office said in a statement.

"The UK welcomes the ceasefire in Israel and Gaza. It is crucial that all sides now focus on ensuring it can last. The events of the last month demonstrate the urgent need to make genuine progress towards a more positive future for both Israelis and Palestinians, and breaks the cycle of violence that has claimed so many lives," said Raab, who arrived to the Middle East on Tuesday.

"The UK supports a two-state solution as the best way to deliver a lasting peace," he added.

According to the Foreign Office, Raab will meet Israeli Foreign and Defence Ministers, Gabi Ashkenazi and Benny Gantz, as well as Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh and Foreign Minister Riad Malki during his one-day visit.

The Egypt-brokered ceasefire in the Gaza Strip came into force overnight to May 21, after eleven days of missile strikes. They followed the unrest near the Al Aqsa Mosque in East Jerusalem, triggered by an Israeli court ruling to confiscate homes from several Arab families in the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood.

The radicals fired more than 4,000 missiles against the territory of the Jewish state. In retaliation the Israeli military bombed hundreds of targets in the enclave. As a result, a total of 270 people were killed in Gaza and 13 people in Israel.

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Palestine Israel Gaza Strip

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