Keir Starmer reiterates backing for Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan

Sir Keir Starmer has reiterated his backing for the US-led peace plan for Gaza in a phone call with Donald Trump.

It comes as Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper is set to bring together Palestinian and Israeli officials in a push for progress on the US leader’s 20-point Gaza peace plan.

Downing Street said Sir Keir and Mr Trump spoke on Tuesday night.

A spokesperson said: “Turning to the situation in Gaza, the Prime Minister reflected on the current situation in the region and the importance of securing further access for humanitarian aid.

“He set out his support for the ongoing work to deliver the US-led peace plan.

“The two leaders confirmed their joint commitment to promoting stability and peace in the Middle East.”

They also agreed that Iran must never be able to develop nuclear weapons as well as discussing ongoing negotiations over Ukraine in the phone call.

The Foreign Secretary meanwhile is set to arrive in New York on Wednesday, where she will chair a meeting of the United Nations Security Council.

According to the Foreign Office, this will bring together Palestinian and Israel briefers for the first time since October 7 2023, when Hamas launched its deadly attack on southern Israel.

She will call for progress implementing the US president’s peace plan, which would see Hamas and other factions “agree to not have any role in the governance of Gaza”.

A temporary transitional committee would be expected to look after the day-to-day running of public services in Gaza, with “oversight and supervision by a new international transitional body”, known as the Board of Peace.

Ms Cooper is also expected to call for international co-operation, “vital for addressing the situation in the West Bank”.

Measures, approved by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet, have expanded Israel’s enforcement authority over land use and planning in areas run by the Palestinian Authority.

Israel’s finance minister Bezalel Smotrich and defence minister Israel Katz have said they would lift long-standing restrictions on land sales to Israeli Jews in the West Bank, shift some control over sensitive holy sites – including Hebron’s Ibrahimi Mosque, also known as the Tomb of the Patriarchs – and declassify land registry records to ease property acquisitions.