By Anne Kauranen

HELSINKI (Reuters) -Finnish Foreign Minister Elina Valtonen said on Friday she hoped U.S. President Donald Trump will move forward with imposing sanctions on Russia as it would help bring an end to the conflict in Ukraine.

"I certainly hope that President Trump will move forward with those sanctions," Valtonen said in a Reuters NEXT Newsmaker interview.

(Corrects to say "Gaza City", not "Gaza," in headline and first paragraph)

LONDON (Reuters) -British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Friday said Israel's decision to take control of Gaza City was wrong and urged the government in Jerusalem to reconsider.

"The Israeli Government’s decision to further escalate its offensive in Gaza is wrong, and we urge it to reconsider immediately," he said in a statement.

"This action will do nothing to bring an end to this conflict or to help secure the release of the hostages. It will only bring more bloodshed."

By Jarrett Renshaw

LONDON (Reuters) -U.S. Vice President JD Vance kicks off a trip in the United Kingdom with a meeting with British Foreign Secretary David Lammy on Friday that will bring renewed scrutiny of Vance’s sharp criticism of Britain and its governing Labour Party.

Vance, his wife,Usha, and their three young children are expected to land in London at the start of a trip that includes staying with Lammy at Chevening, the country residence used by the foreign minister.

Israel's military will "take control" of Gaza City under a new plan approved by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's security cabinet, touching off a wave of criticism Friday from both inside and outside the country.

Nearly two years into the war in Gaza, Netanyahu faces mounting pressure to secure a truce to pull the territory's more than two million people back from the brink of famine and free the hostages held by Palestinian militants.

By Alexander Cornwell, Nidal al-Mughrabi and Charlotte Greenfield

JERUSALEM/CAIRO (Reuters) -Israel's political-security cabinet approved a plan early on Friday to take control of Gaza City, as the country expands its military operations despite intensifying criticism at home and abroad over the devastating almost two-year-old war.

"The IDF will prepare to take control of Gaza City while providing humanitarian aid to the civilian population outside the combat zones," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement, referring to the Israeli Defence Forces.

SYDNEY (Reuters) -Australia has urged Israel "not to go down this path", after Prime Minister Netanyahu said Israel intended to take military control of Gaza.

"Australia calls on Israel to not go down this path, which will only worsen the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza,” Foreign Minister Penny Wong said in a statement on Friday.

Wong said permanent forced displacement was a violation of international law and repeated calls for a ceasefire, aid to flow unimpeded and for militant group Hamas to return the hostages taken in October 2023.

AMMAN (Reuters) -A Jordanian official told Reuters on Thursday that Arabs "will only support what Palestinians agree and decide on" after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel wanted to hand over Gaza to Arab forces that would govern it.

"Security in Gaza must be done through legitimate Palestinian institutions," the source said.

Netanyahu did not elaborate on the governance arrangements or which Arab countries could be involved.

Hundreds of demonstrators including Israelis released from captivity in Gaza rallied on Thursday in Jerusalem as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened his cabinet to review new plans for the war.

Waving Israeli flags and holding portraits of hostages still held by Palestinian militants in Gaza, the protesters gathered outside Netanyahu's office under the slogan "We will bring them back" and called for an end to the war.

(Reuters) -The United States imposed sanctions Thursday on 18 entities and individuals to target what the Treasury Department called a network helping Iran evade sanctions and generate revenue.

The U.S. targets include RUNC Exchange System Company and its leadership, Cyrus Offshore Bank, and Iranian software holding company Pasargad Arian Information and Communication Technology, according to a Treasury Department statement.

AMSTERDAM (Reuters) -The Dutch government on Thursday ruled out recognising a Palestinian state for now despite growing public concern over Gaza but said Israel's actions in the war-ravaged territory were eroding its own security.

The Netherlands' stance is in contrast to that of some NATO allies, most notably France which has said it will recognise Palestinian statehood in September. Britain has said it will also do so unless Israel takes steps to relieve suffering in Gaza, where starvation is spreading, and agrees a ceasefire.