Rishi Sunak backed Joe Biden’s call for a six- to eight-week ceasefire in Gaza to allow food and medicine into the country, following a major intervention from the US president overnight, calling Israel’s response to the conflict “a mistake” .

The prime minister said Biden and he were “very much aligned on this” and that he had been calling for “an immediate pause in humanitarian operations so that we can rescue the hostages”.

Mr Sunak added: “We want assistance to help alleviate the suffering and then use this as a platform to build a sustainable ceasefire.”

His comments come amid a Palestinian humanitarian crisis that has killed more than 30,000 people, including three aid workers, and amid growing domestic and international pressure on Israel to end the conflict in Gaza. Increase. British citizens – exposed to Israeli air strikes.

Joe Biden stepped up his rhetoric on Benjamin Netanyahu’s approach to the Gaza war, calling it a “mistake” in one of his strongest condemnations yet of the Israeli prime minister’s response to the ongoing conflict.

The president made the comments in an interview with Univision on Tuesday night, in which he said recent missile attacks on aid convoys in the Middle East were “outrageous” and called for an end to the fighting.

Asked in the interview whether Mr Netanyahu was “more concerned about his political survival” than the national interests of his people, the president responded: “Well, I’ll tell you, I think what he did It was a mistake. I don’t agree with what he did.”

He continued: “I think it’s outrageous that these four or three vehicles were hit by a drone and taken away on the highway, it’s not like it’s along the coast, it’s not like there’s a convoy going there. “

Biden said he is calling for a six- to eight-week ceasefire in Israel to allow “full access” to Gaza for all food and medicine supplies.

Asked at LBBC If Sunak backed the US president’s comments that Mr Netanyahu’s approach was a “mistake”, the Prime Minister said he had “made it clear to Netanyahu” that the UK was “appalled by what has happened” and shock, especially what happened to the British who helped him achieve this”. Recent aid to Gaza”.

He added: “The current situation is alarming. We would like to see relief for people who are going through a very difficult time and we are doing our part, but we need the Israelis to open more crossings and help more aid comes in.”

British Foreign Secretary Lord David Cameron has announced that Britain will not suspend arms exports to Israel despite “grave concerns” about Gaza and mounting pressure from British politicians and judges.

The foreign secretary said he had reviewed the latest legal advice given to ministers on whether Israel had breached humanitarian law in its war against Hamas.

The “ultimate judgment” was that export licenses “will continue” despite seven aid workers being killed in air strikes last week.

Sunak defended Britain’s decision not to suspend arms sales to Israel, saying “none of our closest allies” had stopped existing export licenses, but added that Netanyahu “needs to do more” to alleviate suffering in Gaza.

The Prime Minister said: “This is a shocking tragedy that happened to our veterans while they selflessly traveled to Gaza on an aid mission, and I have said many times that the situation in Gaza is becoming increasingly intolerable, you know, the humanitarian infliction that people have suffered. The experience of suffering is wrong and Prime Minister Netanyahu needs to do more to alleviate the situation.

“I’ve made it very clear to him.”

Sunak said the UK had a “long-established process” around the arms export regime and “we review these things regularly”.

“This does not change anything. In fact, our closest allies are not currently suspending existing weapons licenses, so we continue to discuss these matters with our allies.”