Israel Palestinian war
The EU’s foreign policy chief has announced he will ask the bloc’s foreign ministers to consider sanctions against Israeli ministers who send “unacceptable messages of hate against Palestinians”.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday ahead of an informal meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels, Josep Borrell said he had launched the process.
He will ask member states to consider “adding to our list of sanctions some Israeli ministers” who have “proposed things that clearly violate international law” and constitute “encouragement to commit war crimes”.
The EU should not be afraid to use its toolbox “to ensure that humanitarian law is respected”.
EU foreign ministers met in Brussels for an informal discussion on global and regional issues, in particular the conflict in Ukraine and the Middle East.
Israel has continued its brutal bombardment of Gaza following a Hamas attack on 7 October, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate ceasefire.
According to local health officials, the onslaught has killed over 40,500 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured over 93,700.
The ongoing blockade of Gaza has led to acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, leaving much of the region in ruins.
The International Court of Justice has accused Israel of genocide and ordered a halt to military operations at Rafah, where over a million Palestinians sought safety before the 6 May incursion.
