The Prime Ministers of Australia, Canada and New Zealand said in a statement that they support urgent international efforts to reach a permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip.

The prime ministers stressed that the continued suffering of civilians in Gaza cannot be the price for the defeat of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), as they put it.

They stressed their opposition to any reoccupation of the Gaza Strip, reducing its area, or imposing forced displacement of Palestinians, and affirmed their support for the Palestinians’ right to self-determination.

They added that the ceasefire in Gaza should not be unilateral, and Hamas should release all its detainees, according to the statement.