LONDON (Reuters) – British Foreign Secretary David Lammy will this week meet with leaders in Bahrain and Jordan as part of Western diplomatic efforts to prevent further escalation in the Middle East.
Lammy will arrive in the region on Wednesday to “reaffirm the importance of working with regional partners to press the case for restraint and will demand Iran and its proxies stop their attacks,” the foreign office said in a statement.
WHY IT’S IMPORTANT
The spiralling conflict has raised concerns that the United States and Iran will be sucked into a wider war.
Britain has long-standing defence and diplomatic ties with both Jordan and Bahrain and is looking to use those to prevent the situation from further destabilising the the wider oil-producing region.
KEY QUOTES
“The situation is incredibly dangerous and further escalation or miscalculation in the region is in no one’s interests,” Lammy said in the foreign office statement.
“We must not waver at this critical period to achieve ceasefires in Gaza and Lebanon, to get more desperately needed aid into Gaza, and secure the release of all hostages.”
CONTEXT
The heightened Middle East tensions kindled a year ago by Palestinian armed group Hamas’ attack from Gaza on southern Israel have escalated in recent weeks into an intensifying series of Israeli strikes on Hezbollah in Lebanon.
(Reporting by William James; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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