James Cleverly, the British Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa, on Thursday called on Israel, the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), and the Palestinians to step back from the brink, describing the current escalation as horrific. He demanded that Hamas halt its rocket attacks on Israel. He stated on Sky News, "It is important for both sides to take a step back." He continued, "We are witnessing an unprecedented level of rocket attacks on Israel... We want those rocket attacks to stop."