British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has said too many civilian lives had been lost in the Israel-Hamas conflict and he repeated his call for a “sustainable ceasefire” to allow the release of hostages, Reuters reports.

Sunak said Britain believed Israel had the right to defend itself following the Hamas attack on southern Israel in October. “But it must do that in accordance with humanitarian law,” he told reporters in Scotland.

“It’s clear that too many civilian lives have been lost. And that’s why we’ve been consistent […] in calling for a sustainable ceasefire, whereby hostages are released, rockets stop being fired into Israel by Hamas and we continue to get more aid in,” he said.