London, Thanasis Gavos

Finding different routes to send humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip is one of the topics of UK Defense Secretary Grant Shapps’ trip to Cyprus and the wider region, he told the House of Commons.

Mr Shapps will be in Cyprus today for meetings with officials and staff of British bases, while he will also visit the Palestinian territories and Israel. He will be accompanied by the head of the British Armed Forces.

“I’m actively looking for different avenues … and that’s one of the reasons I’m going to the area this week,” Mr Shapps said on Tuesday in a debate in the House of Commons. He added that the Rafah land crossing between Egypt and Gaza constitutes a “significant obstacle” to the unhindered delivery of humanitarian aid “to various security hills”.

It is noted that a Foreign Office source hinted on Tuesday that London is considering the Cypriot proposal for a maritime humanitarian corridor to Gaza, an issue Mr. Shapps had discussed two weeks ago in London with his Cypriot counterpart Michalis Giorgalla.

Referring to the British military presence in the region, Grant Shapps said the increase in forces is about supporting contingency planning, monitoring the evolving situation and being ready to react.

He also said two ships, three helicopters and a company of marines have been dispatched to the area. Two more warships were and remain in the Middle East region.

He also confirmed the start of British spy flights with unmanned aircraftas part of an intelligence-gathering hostage rescue support mission.

Asked about the role of the bases in Cyprus in the current situation, Mr. Shapps said that they are used to support British soldiers in the region and assured that they have not been used to supply offensive weapons to Israel. “During the conflict we would only provide defense equipment or equipment that might assist with the recovery of hostages,” added the British Defense Secretary.