The Israeli government has responded to the Prince of Wales’s intervention on the Gaza conflict, warning that the fighting would end when all hostages are freed and Hamas is dismantled.
Eylon Levy, an Israeli government spokesman, issued a statement in direct response to Prince William’s call for an end to the fighting.
Mr Levy said: “Israelis of course want to see an end to the fighting as soon as possible, and that will be possible once the 134 hostages are released, and once the Hamas terror army threatening to repeat the Oct 7 atrocities is dismantled.
“We appreciate the Prince of Wales’ call for Hamas to free the hostages.
“We also recall with gratitude his statement from Oct 11 condemning Hamas’ terror attacks and reaffirming Israel’s right of self-defence against them.”
Earlier on Tuesday, in his strongest intervention on the crisis to date, the Prince said: “I remain deeply concerned about the terrible human cost of the conflict in the Middle East since the Hamas terrorist attack on Oct 7. Too many have been killed.
“I, like so many others, want to see an end to the fighting as soon as possible. There is a desperate need for increased humanitarian support to Gaza. It’s critical that aid gets in and the hostages are released.
“Sometimes it is only when faced with the sheer scale of human suffering that the importance of permanent peace is brought home.
“Even in the darkest hour, we must not succumb to the counsel of despair. I continue to cling to the hope that a brighter future can be found, and I refuse to give up on that.”
Nigel Farage, the former Brexit Party leader, led criticism of the Prince for intervening in the crisis. He wrote on X, formerly Twitter: “I’m not sure that our future King should be doing this. He should stick to the Baftas.”
The Prince, who has been Bafta president since 2010, attended the annual award ceremony on Sunday.