Latest news with #EU-Israel
The National
39 minutes ago
- Politics
- The National
MEPs call for emergency EU meeting on sanctioning Israel
In a letter sent to EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, members have demanded a meeting be convened immediately following continuing Israeli attacks on Palestinians at aid sites. They said the recent EU-Israel aid agreement delivered "no tangible change" in conditions on the ground, highlighting that as children die of starvation EU responds with "weak words and no action." "We are writing to you today to demand immediate action is taken given the appalling humanitarian situation in Gaza and the continued Israeli attacks on Palestinians at aid distribution sites which have so far resulted in the deaths of over 1000 people," the MEPs wrote. READ MORE: Daily Express Gaza front page marks a shift, but there's more to do "Let us be clear, history will not look kindly on the EU's silence and complicity in the face of starvation and genocide in Gaza and European citizens are using their voices to demand real action. As their elected representatives, we put it to you that there can be no more double standards, no more silence and no more complicity." The MEPs demanded adoption of a full suite of sanctions against Israel, sanctions on the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation and individuals within the organisation, formal proposal of measures following the review of EU-Israel Association Agreement and lobbying member states to implement a two-way arms embargo. The letter went on: "Every day we do not take action is another day where Palestinians in Gaza are left to starve or be killed. Action is needed now." Last week Amnesty International branded the EU's decision to stand by a trade deal with Israel as "one of the most disgraceful moments in the EU's history". The EU-Israel Association Agreement is a trade and cooperation deal that gives Israel preferential access to the EU market. READ MORE: Scottish community-owned island announces boycott of Israel At a meeting in Brussels, member states were presented with 10 options, including full suspension of the agreement, an arms embargo, sanctions on Israeli ministers, halting visa-free travel for Israeli citizens to the EU, and banning trade with Israeli settlements. However, none of the options gathered the necessary support during the meeting. Human rights organisation Global Witness also said earlier this month the EU is risking a breach of international law over a gas deal with Israel. The international NGO has claimed the deal "tramples over Palestinian rights" and helps "bankroll Israel's genocide in Gaza". The gas deal was signed in 2022 in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, as the EU took a clear stance on ending "the era of Russian fossil fuels" and sought to diversify its gas supply. According to Israel's energy ministry, the agreement enables substantial Israeli gas exports to Europe. The route for this gas to be exported from Israel to the EU relies on a pipeline, operated in part by a subsidiary of US oil giant Chevron, which crosses Palestinian territory without regard for international conventions. The deal signed between Israel, Egypt and the EU, which has come up for renewal this June, is likely to make the EU complicit in breaches of international law, the Global Witness investigation said.
Middle East Eye
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
French legal group to take EU to court for ‘failing to prevent Gaza genocide'
French and Belgian jurists are due to file a case before the EU Court of Justice (CJEU) on Thursday against the EU Commission and Council for alleged 'failure to prevent genocide' in Gaza. Legal proceedings will come on the back of the failure by EU ministers on Tuesday to agree on suspending the EU-Israel Association Agreement. A review of the deal had found that Israel is in breach of the human rights terms associated with the agreement. The EU-Israel agreement provides for preferential trade terms, cooperation on research, culture and security, and a framework for political dialogue. Its human rights clause, Article 2, states that respect for democratic principles and human rights is an essential element of the partnership. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters The case, which will be filed in Luxembourg, is the first to challenge the two EU institutions for failing to act against Israel's devastating attack on Gaza. Israel's war on Gaza has been labelled a genocide by several EU members, including Spain, Ireland and Slovenia. The case will be filed by Jurists for the Respect of International Law (Jurdi), a French NGO, which sent formal notices on 12 and 15 May to the Commission and Council. They called for the suspension of cooperation agreements with Israel and for a halt to arms transfers amid the ongoing Israeli campaign, which is confirmed to have killed nearly 60,000 Palestinians in 21 months. UN's Albanese calls out 'appalling' EU failure to sanction Israel as 32-nation summit in Bogota kicks off Read More » Jurdi is requesting that the CJEU formally acknowledge this failure to act, and order EU institutions to suspend cooperation with Israel, adopt targeted sanctions and fulfil their duty of prevention. Jurdi's president, Patrick Zahnd, told Middle East Eye that the group is also requesting the court issue a binding order for emergency measures. According to Jurdi, the European Commission incurs legal responsibility of EU institutions with respect to Articles 2, 3, 21, 29, and 215 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), the EU–Israel Association Agreement and the peremptory norms of international law (jus cogens). The case argues that the EU violated four principles of international law, including the obligation to prevent genocide, the duty to end impediments to the Palestinian people's right to self-determination, the prohibition on recognition of or assistance to an unlawful situation, such as prolonged occupation, and the obligation to ensure respect for international humanitarian law, particularly in the face of war crimes and crimes against humanity. On Tuesday, the EU's 27 foreign ministers in Brussels failed to agree on the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. They also failed to agree on nine other possible measures against Israel put forward after it was found to have breached human rights provisions of the trade agreement. The measures that would have been agreed on Tuesday included full suspension of the agreement, suspension of its preferential trade provisions, an arms embargo, sanctions on Israeli ministers, or imposing a ban on trade with Israeli settlements in occupied Palestine.
The National
16-07-2025
- Politics
- The National
Israel Kats presents cheaper and quicker plan for concentration camp
Israel Katz, the Israeli minister, said earlier this month he has ordered Israel's military to prepare for establishing a camp, which he called a 'humanitarian city', on the ruins of the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Plans would see Palestinians have to go through 'security screening' before entering, and once inside would not be allowed to leave. The project is backed by Netanyahu. However, Netanyahu dismissed the first proposition, saying it was far too costly and complicated and ordered the military to propose something cheaper and quicker. READ MORE: Refusal to suspend EU-Israel deal a 'cruel and unlawful betrayal' – Amnesty The initial plan was estimated to cost between $2.7 and $4 billion. The latest plan is estimated to cost about $1.2bn and the construction of the site – which would provide tents, electricity, water, and food – would take about two months, it said. The report comes amid widespread criticism of the Israeli scheme that would move 600,000 already uprooted Palestinians into a small piece of land in southern Gaza – a scheme that critics say amounts to the establishment of a 'concentration camp' and ethnic cleansing. Israel's former prime minister Ehud Olmert previously told the Guardian that Israel has committed war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank and plans for building a camp would mark an escalation.
Irish Examiner
16-07-2025
- Politics
- Irish Examiner
EU accused of ‘cruel and unlawful betrayal' of Palestinians over failure to confront Israel
The EU has been accused of a 'cruel and unlawful betrayal' of Palestinians and European values after failing to take action to impose sanctions on Israel over the war in Gaza. The stinging rebuke from Amnesty International, echoed by other human rights organisations, came after EU ministers meeting in Brussels on Tuesday declined to endorse any measures to sanction Israel over the brutal war in Gaza and endemic violence in the West Bank. The EU's most senior diplomat, Kaja Kallas, said the bloc would keep 'options on the table' to pressure Israel's government if there was no improvement in the 'catastrophic' humanitarian situation in Gaza. According to several diplomatic sources she did not endorse any one of 10 sanctions options drawn up by her team, after an earlier EU review found 'indications' Israel was in breach of human rights commitments. Kallas said Israel needed to 'take more concrete steps to improve the humanitarian situation on the ground', which earlier in the day she had described as catastrophic. She was meeting EU foreign affairs ministers days after announcing a potentially significant agreement with Israel to increase the flow of humanitarian aid to Gaza, where 2.1 million people face famine and drought caused by the collapse of water systems. EU sources say the flow of aid into the territory has increased to about 80 trucks a day, but distribution remains problematic. With no clear signs that new aid inflows were reaching people over the weekend, Palestinians have continued to risk their lives queueing for food and water at sites run by the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, an Israeli-backed logistics group. Officials in Gaza reported that in one 24-hour period over the weekend, 139 people were killed, including women and children queuing for food. The UN said about 850 Palestinians in the enclave had been killed while waiting to receive aid since May, both at GHF distribution points and elsewhere. Ministers were not expected to endorse any of the 10 sanctions options, which include full suspension of the EU-Israel association agreement, a trade and cooperation deal. Suspending this deal is widely seen as a non-starter as it requires the unanimous support of member states. Israel's closest EU allies – Germany, Hungary and the Czech Republic – oppose sanctions, especially now Israel has struck a humanitarian deal with the EU. Hungary also continues to veto EU sanctions on violent Israeli settlers in the West Bank. Even countries strongly supportive of the Palestinian cause, such as Ireland, have not called for any specific measures, but await proposals from Kallas. Only Spain has come out clearly for a suspension of the association agreement. Agnès Callamard, Amnesty International's secretary general, said refusal to suspend the agreement with Israel 'is a cruel and unlawful betrayal of the European project and vision, predicated on upholding international law and fighting authoritarian practices, of the European Union's own rules and of the human rights of Palestinians'. She added: 'This will be remembered as one of the most disgraceful moments in the EU's history.' Claudio Francavilla, the acting EU director of Human Rights Watch in Brussels, said: 'Once again, EU ministers have failed. Not enough support for any measure to hold Israel to account, traded away for the illusory promise of a few more trucks.' Earlier in the day, Kallas said there were positive signs on border crossings, arrival of humanitarian aid trucks, reconstruction of electricity lines and water, but 'of course we need to see more in order to see real improvement for the people on the ground'. She said the EU would keep a 'close watch' on how the agreement was implemented, with updates to European diplomats once a fortnight. According to the EU, the agreement with Israel means 'the substantial increase of daily trucks for food and non-food items to enter Gaza' among other measures, including the repair of power supplies to Gaza's critical water desalination facility. Kallas said member states had a discussion on the options paper, but she did not take ownership of any proposal. 'These are the choices that member states have to make,' she told reporters. 'We will keep these options on the table and stand ready to act if Israel does not live up to its pledges. The aim is not to punish Israel. The aim is to improve the situation in Gaza.' Speaking on Monday, Israel's foreign minister, Gideon Sa'ar, expressed confidence the EU would not take any action, saying: 'There's no justification whatsoever.' Hadja Lahbib, the EU commissioner for humanitarian aid, struck a more urgent tone, saying it was clear the agreement was not yet fully implemented: 'My message to the Israeli authorities is very clear. Put this agreement into action now. Stop killing the people. We need humanitarian aid: food, water, fuel to reach the people in need.' Lahbib, who briefed ministers about the aid deal, added that 'it was important to know what we can do if the agreement is not fully implemented' and that the situation would need to have improved before the next formal gathering of foreign ministers in October. 'Every minute lost is a life lost,' she said. Read More Israel-backed aid organisation in Gaza says 20 killed at distribution site
Euronews
15-07-2025
- Politics
- Euronews
EU delays measures against Israel on Gaza despite pressure to act
The EU will not 'punish' Israel for its actions in Gaza and will 'keep a close watch' on the country's implementation of a recent agreement to improve the flow of aid in the strip, the bloc's top diplomat Kaja Kallas said in a press conference following a meeting of the EU's 27 ministers in Brussels. The ministers were in Brussels to discuss an EU-Israel agreement brokered last week to increase the number of trucks and distribution of food entering Gaza as well as the opening of several other crossing points. They also examined an exhaustive list of 10 options, including the suspension of visa-free travel and the blocking of imports from the Jewish settlements, in response to Israel's breach of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. 'Israel needs to take more concrete steps to improve the humanitarian situation on the ground,' Kallas told reporters, adding that Israel had already improved access and supplies of aid to Gaza. "The EU will keep a close watch on how Israel implements this common understanding and the pledges." 'The aim is not to punish Israel, the aim is to improve the situation in Gaza,' Kallas added. The bloc's ambassadors will be tasked to update Israel's compliance of the agreement every two weeks, Kallas said, and the EU would keep the 10 options 'on the table' and 'stand ready to act if Israel does not live up to its pledges'. Last week, the Israeli military admitted a "technical error" following a strike that reportedly killed 10 people, including six children, near a Gaza water distribution point. Some ministers expressed frustration at the lack of action against Israel. Following Tuesday's meeting, Slovenian foreign minister Tanja Fajon wrote on X that she regretted there hadn't been 'any consensus' during the meeting to follow up on the review of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. She added that an "agreement in principle" on improving humanitarian aid 'can't be used as an excuse to inaction'. 'We all have a responsibility to protect civilians,' she added. Prior to the meeting on Tuesday, some ministers had also sent clear signs that they wanted to take concrete measures against Israel. Spain's foreign affairs minister José Manuel Albares told reporters that in accordance with EU and international norms, his country would push for a suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, an arms embargo to Israel and the ban of products from the Jewish settlements. 'This war needs to end, and the Israeli army needs to withdraw,' Albares said. His French counterpart, Jean-Noël Barrot also said France would be ready to take sanctions targeted at 'individuals and entities that are responsible for the extremist and violent colonisation' in the West Bank and to 'stop any direct and indirect financial support to the colonisation'.
