British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has landed in Israel on Thursday, a Reuters witness said, beginning a visit in which he will meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog before travelling on to other regional capitals.

Sunak will share his condolences for the loss of life in Israel and Gaza as a result of the Oct 7 attack on Israel by Hamas fighters, his office said, and warn against further escalation of conflict in the region.

“Every civilian death is a tragedy. And too many lives have been lost following Hamas’ horrific act of terror,” Sunak said in a statement ahead of his visit.

He said a deadly blast at a Gaza hospital on Tuesday which killed hundreds of Palestinians should be “a watershed moment for leaders in the region and across the world to come together to avoid further dangerous escalation of conflict”, pledging Britain would be at “the forefront of this effort”.