A joint statement called for an immediate ceasefire and said that "withholding essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable."

France will become the largest Western power and the first member of the G-7 to recognize Palestinian statehood.

More than one third of MPs, drawn from across the political parties, have signed a letter urging the Prime Minister to give official recognition to a Palestinian state. The letter piles pressure on Sir Keir Starmer after France committed to recognising a Palestinian state within months.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Friday the British government would recognise a Palestinian state only as part of a negotiated peace deal, disappointing many in his Labour Party who want him to follow France in taking swifter action.

UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is facing pressure from senior members of his government and French President Emmanuel Macron to imminently recognize Palestine as a sovereign state due to the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza.