Key Points
- In 2018, William became the first senior British royal to make an official visit to Israel and occupied Palestinian territory.
- Kensington Palace said that Britain's Foreign Office had been briefed about William's statement before he made it.
- King Charles has called the Hamas attacks in southern Israel "barbaric acts of terrorism".
In an unusually direct intervention for a member of the royal family, William, the heir to the British throne, said it was critical that, and that Hamas must release hostages.
"I remain deeply concerned about the terrible human cost of the conflict in the Middle East since the Hamas terrorist attack (on Israel) on 7 October. Too many have been killed," William said in a statement.
In 2018, William became the first senior British royal to make an official visit to Israel and occupied Palestinian territory, and since then, he has followed the region closely, his office said.
In response to Prince William, Israeli government spokesman Eylon Levy said: "Israelis, of course, want to see an end to the fighting as soon as possible, and that will be possible once the, and once the Hamas terror army threatening to repeat the 7 October atrocities is dismantled."
The 41-year-old prince visited the British Red Cross headquarters in London on Tuesday to hear about their work supporting people affected by war in the Middle East.
"I, like so many others, want to see an end to the fighting as soon as possible," he said.
"There is a desperate need for increased humanitarian support to Gaza. It’s critical that aid gets in and the hostages are released."
Israel has bombarded Gaza since Hamas' 7 October attack in which more than 1,200 people, including an estimated 30 children, were killed and over 200 hostages taken, according to the Israeli government. More than 29,195 people have been killed in Gaza since 7 October, mostly women and children, according to the health ministry in Gaza.
The 7 October attack was a significant escalation in .
