Netanyahu ‘refusing to speak to world leaders over response to Iran attack’

RISHI Sunak was last night still waiting to talk to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to urge restraint in response to Iran’s missile and drone attack.

Mr Sunak had expected to speak to his counterpart on Monday, but Downing Street later changed that to yesterday.

There was no indication last night that the call had taken place.

Israeli media reported that Mr Netanyahu was refusing to take calls from world leaders seeking to influence the response to Saturday night’s attack.

Downing Street denied the UK, which supplied RAF jets to help thwart Iran’s barrage, was being “taken for granted” by Israel and suggested Mr Netanyahu’s other commitments meant a call had not been possible.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “He has obviously been in discussions with his war cabinet.

“The Foreign Secretary and Defence Secretary have been speaking to their counterparts.”

The spokesman added: “Our position has been made very clearly. We are now working with allies in the region, including Israel, to de-escalate the situation.”

Mr Sunak told MPS on Monday he would speak to Mr Netanyahu “shortly” to express solidarity with Israel “and to discuss how we can prevent further escalation”.

“All sides must show restraint,” he added.

Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron, who is reportedly set to visit Israel soon, urged Tel Aviv to be “smart as well as tough” by not escalating the conflict with Iran.

Mr Sunak has come under pressure from senior Tories and the Israeli government to ban Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation in the wake of the attack.

But doing so could jeopardise the UK’S ability to engage with Tehran, a Government minister suggested. The UK is keen to preserve diplomatic channels of communication to minimise the risk of a miscalculation in the Middle East which could ignite a wider war.

The IRGC wields significant influence over Iran’s politics and has been blamed for destabilising the Middle East through its support for groups including Hamas and Hezbollah, and the Houthis in Yemen who have attacked Red Sea shipping.

Senior Tories including former leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith and ex-home Secretary Suella Braverman have urged the Prime Minister to proscribe the group as a terrorist organisation.

But Home Office minister Laura Farris told LBC: “I don’t think there’s any disagreement, actually, on the principle.

“We’re not for a second defending the IRGC. We’re simply saying that maintaining that channel with Tehran at this moment in time is, at present, in our national interest.”

Meanwhile, Easyjet is halting all flights to and from Israel for the next six months following recent escalation of conflicts in the Middle East.

The British carrier will not be flying to Tel Aviv until at least late October. It only restarted flights on March 25, following a pause after the outbreak of war between Israel and Hamas.

“As a result of the continued evolving situation in Israel, easyjet has now taken the decision to suspend its flights to Tel Aviv for the remainder of the summer season until October 27.

“Customers booked to fly on this route up to this date are being offered options including a full refund.”

Easyjet’s decision follows Virgin Atlantic, which in February said it had “taken the difficult decision” to extend its pause on flights to and from Tel Aviv until September 4, citing “the ongoing situation in Israel”.

A Virgin Atlantic spokesperson said: “Our flight routings are subject to continual security assessment and operate in line with UK, US and local regulations.

“The safety and security of our customers and people is paramount and always will be.”

British Airways resumed flights to Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport at the beginning on April. A spokesman for BA said it is monitoring the situation, but flights are operating as usual.

A spokesperson for Wizz Air said that “following the ongoing escalation in the region”, it cancelled services on Saturday and Monday but resumed flying yesterday, warning that passengers may see some changes to the schedule.