UK pledges £6m aid for Gazans amid continuing efforts to quell tensions
Foreign Office minister Anneliese Dodds is visiting Jordan to discuss how allied countries can work together on brokering peace.
Your support helps us to tell the story
As your White House correspondent, I ask the tough questions and seek the answers that matter.
Your support enables me to be in the room, pressing for transparency and accountability. Without your contributions, we wouldn't have the resources to challenge those in power.
Your donation makes it possible for us to keep doing this important work, keeping you informed every step of the way to the November election
Andrew Feinberg
White House Correspondent
The UK will pledge £6 million towards aid in Gaza, as a Foreign Office minister calls for peace in the Middle East during a visit to Jordan.
Anneliese Dodds, the international development minister, has pledged a package of food, water, health, education and wellbeing support for Gazans.
She is visiting Jordan to meet ministers and discuss how the UK and its ally can work together on brokering a peace in the Israel-Hamas conflict, as well as quelling other regional tensions.
Israel has been exchanging rocket fire along its northern border with Lebanon-based militant group Hezbollah, sparking fears the conflict could escalate.
Foreign Secretary David Lammy has said the UK stands “ready and prepared” should tensions heighten, after the Government warned British nationals in Lebanon to leave.
As she embarked on her visit, Foreign Office minister Ms Dodds said: “Now is the time for calm, if we are to achieve lasting peace and stability in the Middle East. It is in no-one’s interests for tensions to escalate and spread across the wider region.”
Among the projects the UK funding will support is the vaccination and immunisation of more than 20,000 children, recreational activities for more than 8,000 school-aged children to boost their wellbeing and help for more than 55,000 people in Gaza to access clean water and sanitation.
The minister added: “We are seeing the humanitarian impact of conflict on Gazans. This new UK support will provide a lifeline for vulnerable families, giving them access to basic food and water during a desperate time.”
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.