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The United Kingdom says it is working with Jordan on “forward plans” to airdrop aid into besieged Gaza and evacuate children needing medical care as Israel’s forced starvation and bombardment of Palestinians fuel global outrage.

Two infants on Saturday became the latest Palestinian children to die from malnutrition. Hospitals in Gaza have now recorded five new deaths due to famine and malnutrition in the past 24 hours. The total number of starvation deaths in the territory has risen to 127, including 85 children.

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed the proposal on Saturday in an emergency call with French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz.

In a readout of the call, the UK government said the leaders had
agreed “it would be vital to ensure robust plans are in place to turn an urgently needed ceasefire into lasting peace,” according to Britain’s Press Association.

“The prime minister set out how the UK will also be taking forward plans to work with partners such as Jordan to airdrop aid and evacuate children requiring medical assistance,” the readout said.

Starmer’s Labour government has been roundly accused at home of doing too little too late to alleviate the intense suffering of Palestinians in Gaza.

Hundreds of thousands of people in the UK have been protesting weekly against Israel’s genocidal war since October 2023, making it clear they feel their voices aren’t being heard.

Public anger has been further stoked as police in the UK arrested more than 100 people at peaceful protests across the country last weekend that called for a ban on the campaign group Palestine Action to be reversed.

Demonstrations took place on Saturday in Manchester, Edinburgh, Bristol, Truro and London as part of a campaign coordinated by Defend Our Juries.

Starmer is also facing mounting pressure to recognise a Palestinian state as France has said it will do at the United Nations General Assembly meeting in September. More than 200 British parliamentarians urged the prime minister to take this course of action this week.

There has been further controversy over accusations the UK government has continued with arms sales to Israel despite stating it had scaled back weapons sales.

A report in May found that UK firms have continued to export military items to Israel despite a government suspension in September amid allegations that the UK Parliament has been deliberately “misled”.

The report by the Palestinian Youth Movement, Progressive International and Workers for a Free Palestine revealed that the UK sent “8,630 separate munitions since the suspensions took effect, all in the category ‘Bombs, Grenades, Torpedoes, Mines, Missiles And Similar Munitions Of War And Parts Thereof-Other’.

‘Waiting for the green light to get into Gaza’

In the meantime, Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), said proposed airdrops of aid would be an expensive, inefficient “distraction” that could kill starving Palestinians.

Israel said on Friday that it will allow airdrops of food and supplies from foreign countries into Gaza in the coming days in response to critical food shortages caused by its punishing months-long blockade.

But in a social media post, Lazzarini said the airdrops would “not reverse the deepening starvation” and called instead for Israel to “lift the siege, open the gates [and] guarantee safe movements [and] dignified access to people in need.”

Airdrops, he said, are “expensive, inefficient [and] can even kill starving civilians”. “A manmade hunger can only be addressed by political will,” he said, calling on Israel to allow the UN and its partners to operate at scale in Gaza “without bureaucratic or political hurdles”.

He said UNRWA has the equivalent of 6,000 trucks in Jordan and Egypt “waiting for the green light to get into Gaza”. “Driving aid through is much easier, more effective, faster, cheaper and safer” than airdrops, he said, adding that it is also more dignified for the people of Gaza.

More than 100 aid and human rights groups this week called on governments to take urgent action as a hunger crisis engulfs Gaza, including by demanding an immediate and permanent ceasefire and the lifting of all restrictions on humanitarian aid.

In a statement signed and released on Wednesday by 109 organisations, including Mercy Corps, the Norwegian Refugee Council and Doctors Without Borders (also known as MSF), the groups warned that deepening starvation of the population was spreading across the besieged enclave.

Doctor Who aired its latest season finale on Saturday night, in which the likes of Ncuti Gatwa, Varada Sethu and Millie Gibson appeared to bid farewell to the BBC show

Cast member Varada Sethu has now broken her silence following the season finale of Doctor Who on the weekend. The episode, which featured the departure of her co-star Ncuti Gatwa, is thought to mark her exit from the show.

Varada, 33, played companion Belinda Chandra in the latest season of the BBC show. The character made her debut in the first episode, which aired in April, and then bid farewell to the Doctor – played by Ncuti, 32 – in Saturday’s finale.

The actor has since addressed her apparent departure from Doctor Who in a lengthy post shared on Instagram today. Varada wrote about her experience as a cast member alongside various photos, including several of her and Ncuti.

She wrote in the caption: “Wow wow wow wow wow. I’m sooo late to the party (as always), but needed to take a few days to process this show, this finale and everything & everyone it has brought into my life, what it all means.

“My heart has doubled in size. I have felt so so full of gratitude and love, I still feel I haven’t found the words to express it. It has been a true gift to know a woman like Belinda, I will never forget our journey together.”

Praising her co-stars, she continued by writing: “Thank you [Ncuti] for being my partner in crime, my beloved Doctor. You are unending, pure magic, what a privilege it’s been to bear witness to it. Mom & Dad forever. My sweet angel [Millie Gibson], thank you for your kindness, for always lifting me up, you have stolen everyone’s hearts!! I cannot wait to see what life has in store for you.”

Varada then expressed gratitude for some colleagues who worked behind-the-scenes. She wrote: “For teaching me and showing me love & support like I’ve never known before.” She added in the post this week: “Thank you to every beautiful soul involved in this madness.”

She concluded: “And of course to the beautiful fans, thank you soooo much for embracing Belinda, for all the kind words, all the joy! I think I finally understand what you meant [Russell T. Davies] when you said my life would never be the same. I feel transformed. Thank you thank you thank you.”

The post has amassed more than 16,000 likes and former colleagues reacted in the comments section. Ncuti wrote: “MOM AND DAD FOREVER. Love you endlessly.” Whilst co-star Millie said in her reply to Varada: “I LOVE YOU.”

Varada’s post comes after lead Ncuti addressed his own departure from Doctor Who. Last week’s season finale, the Reality War, on Saturday night saw his Fifteenth Doctor regenerate – showing Billie Piper in his place – in a bid to save Poppy (played by Sienna-Robyn Mavanga-Phipps), who in one reality was the child of the Doctor and Belinda.

In a video message shared by the BBC, Ncuti said: “It’s a role that demands a lot of you physically and emotionally and mentally. The actors playing the Doctor are only actors playing the Doctor. Unfortunately, we are mere mortals.”

Ncuti, who also reflected on the experience elsewhere in the video, released on Saturday, added: “I would love to have the energy and the youth to be able to do this full time for the rest of my life, but my knees are telling me it’s time.”

And in a statement, he said: “You know when you get cast, at some point you are going to have to hand back that sonic screwdriver and it is all going to come to an end, but nothing quite prepares you for it. This journey has been one that I will never forget and a role that will be part of me forever.”

Ncuti said elsewhere in the statement: “The fans are truly the final character and beating heart of this show and I can’t thank the Whoniverse, and the Whovians, enough for welcoming me in, and making this such a touching experience. I’ve loved every minute of it, but now is the time to hand over the keys to that beloved blue box.”

There had been speculation over his potential departure in recent months. It came after Ncuti, who starred in two seasons of Doctor Who, reportedly revealed in an unaired moment on the Graham Norton Show in October last year that he would be “filming the third series next year”.

Amid recent speculation, just days prior to the finale’s broadcast, the BBC confirmed to the Mirror that Ncuti had not been “axed”. A spokesperson told us at the time: “Whilst we never comment on the future of the Doctor, any suggestion that Ncuti Gatwa has been ‘axed’ is pure fiction.”

Addressing the future of the show, they added: “As we have previously stated, the decision on season 3 will be made after season 2 airs and any other claims are just pure speculation. The deal with Disney+ was for 26 episodes – and we still have an entire spin off, The War Between the Land and the Sea, to air. And as for the rest, we never comment on the Doctor and future storylines.”

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