200 Britons in Gaza plead for help

BORDER Force teams are poised to help pluck hundreds of Britons from war-torn Gaza, the Prime Minister said yesterday.

- Sam Lister

Rishi Sunak has sent the teams to Egypt to "quickly" help 200 nationals who have contacted the Foreign Office. He said he was continuing to push for a pause in fighting to give them a safe exit route and allow aid to reach desperate Palestinians.

Ministers said they were working "night and day" to secure the release of British hostages held by Hamas.

Fewer than five are believed to be among the terror group's captives, but many more nationals are trapped in Gaza as Israel mounts air strikes and raids on the territory.

It follows the massacre of 1,400 Israelis by Hamas on October 7.

Mr Sunak's spokesman said ensuring the safety of Britons wanting to leave Gaza was "something that we've been working on intensely over the past few days".

He said the exact number in the territory could not be confirmed, but about 200 had contacted authorities.

Mr Sunak has called for "a safer environment, which of course necessitates specific pauses, which are distinct from a ceasefire" to extract Britons.

Ready

He added: "We're very keen to be able to bring them out and bring them home. What I can tell you is we've prepositioned Border Force teams to Egypt. So if there is a possibility for our nationals to cross the Rafah crossing, we're ready to get them in and bring them back.

"It is not something we do immediately, but when the moment arises, we'll be ready to take it quickly." The Rafah crossing between northeast Egypt and Gaza is the only border point in the territory that is not controlled by Israel.

The Jewish state has besieged the Hamas-ruled area to stop essentials such as water, food and fuel entering the Gaza Strip.

Only in recent days has it agreed to allow aid through the Rafah crossing.