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Sunak vows to stand with Israel

“We will continue to stand with Israel against the kind of reckless attack that we saw earlier this month from Iran,” said the British prime minister.

Netanyahu Sunak
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his U.K. counterpart Rishi Sunak hold a news conference in Jerusalem, Oct. 19, 2023. Photo by Amos Ben-Gershom/GPO.

The United Kingdom will continue to support Israel against “reckless” attacks by Iran and its terrorist proxies in the region, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak vowed in his annual Passover holiday statement on Monday.

“My thoughts are with those who lost loved ones on the 7th of October and those who continue to be held hostage. And we will continue to stand with Israel against the kind of reckless attack that we saw earlier this month from Iran,” said Sunak in the video statement posted to X.

The British leader noted that Passover is “a moment for families and communities to give thanks, to gather around the Seder table and break matzah together.”

However, “for too many families, there will be empty seats,” he said.

“The promise of Passover is that better times lie ahead. So to the Jewish community in the U.K. and around the world, whether your loved ones are near or far, I hope that this holiday brings some comfort and a reminder of that promise of a better tomorrow,” said Sunak.

Earlier this month, Sunak marked six months since the Hamas massacre of some 1,200 people by calling for an immediate ceasefire between Israel and the terrorist group and announcing additional aid to Gaza via the sea.

In January, British Foreign Secretary David Cameron sparked controversy when he suggested that London unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state so Palestinians “can see that there is going to be irreversible progress to a two-state solution.”

“You meet people who think Netanyahu has been an extraordinary wartime leader, something no American I know would dare speak out loud, but still want him gone,” Reuven Fenton told JNS. “You meet others, who hold him responsible for Oct. 7 but don’t see a credible alternative.”
“We have a really simple mission that binds everyone together,” Catherine Reed, CEO of American Friends of Magen David Adom, told JNS. “We save lives.”
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