Israeli ministers are “starting to spread messages of hate, unacceptable messages of hate against the Palestinians,” Mr Borrell said on Thursday in Brussels, ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers.
Some of the things Israeli ministers are proposing are “clearly against international law” and encourage “war crimes”, Mr Borrell said
Sanctions are proposed for Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, dpa learned from EU officials shortly before the meeting.
The EU must not consider anything taboo when it comes to ensuring that humanitarian law is respected, Mr. Borrell said, stressing that EU countries must decide for themselves.
Hungary and Germany are considered the strongest supporters of Israel in the EU, but German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock did not rule out the possibility that Germany will support the proposal to impose sanctions on B. Smotrich and I. Ben-Gvir.
A. Baerbock said before the meeting that, in her opinion, only legal claims and accusations against politicians should be taken into account when approving sanctions.
Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz said on Platform X that the EU is working with its supporters against the sanctions “being pushed by anti-Israeli elements”.
“Our message is clear: in a reality where Israel faces threats from Iran and the terrorist organizations it supports, the free world must be with Israel, not against it,” Katz said.
Both Smotrich and Ben-Gvir have recently caused outrage with anti-Palestinian statements. They are partners in Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right coalition.
Both ministers are supporters of the settlement policy in the occupied territories, a policy that the UN’s highest court considers illegal.
Ben-Gvir recently called for an end to aid flows to the Gaza Strip in order to put pressure on the Palestinian organization Hamas.
Smotrich made a similar statement, suggesting a possible aid blockade until all hostages kidnapped in Israel and held by Hamas are released. He said it was morally justifiable, even if it put 2 million people at risk. The lives of people living in the Gaza Strip.
According to Israel, Hamas is still holding 107 hostages in Gaza. It is believed that at least a third of them are no longer alive.
The war in the Gaza Strip was sparked by an attack by Hamas that killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, on October 7.
Since then, the Israeli military has killed more than 40,000 people, including thousands of children, in its bombardment of the Gaza Strip, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Authority.
Several EU foreign ministers have expressed dismay at the humanitarian situation in Gaza and called on Israel and the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas to agree a ceasefire.
“Essentially, this is now a war against the Palestinians, not just against Hamas,” Irish Foreign Minister Micheál Martin said, describing the civilian toll as “unforgivable.”
“The enormous suffering of the civilian population in Gaza must end,” said Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström.
Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib called the fighting in Gaza “a tragedy, a humanitarian catastrophe” and warned of an escalation of violence in the West Bank.
Mr Baerbock joined calls for a ceasefire and said the situation in the West Bank “must not be allowed to explode”.
Sigrid Kaag, a senior UN official coordinating humanitarian efforts in Gaza, said this scale of destruction and human suffering was “unprecedented in the 21st century”.
2024-08-30 03:43:21