Civilians displaced during Israel’s 15-month war in Gaza must be allowed to return to their homes in the Palestinian enclave, the European Union is to tell Israel.
Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar is representing Binyamin Netanyahu’s government in talks with the EU’s foreign affairs chief Kaja Kallas in Brussels on Monday.
Foreign ministers from the 27 EU states will be present for part of the discussions, where Ireland, Spain and others are expected to raise human rights violations that took place during the war in Gaza.
The meeting, which would have dominated the political agenda in Brussels had it taken place a few months ago, will likely be overshadowed by separate discussions between EU foreign ministers about the war in Ukraine.
Israel’s invasion and bombardment of Gaza reduced large parts of the strip to rubble and killed more than 46,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. However, the uneasy ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas hastaken from what sense of urgency there was in the EU to put pressure on Israel.
A number of states seen as more supportive of Israel, such as Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic, have been pushing behind the scenes to make sure the EU-Israel meeting does not become a “tribunal” on Gaza, several sources said.
Diplomats from the 27 member states have spent a number of weeks hammering out a joint position, which the EU will put to Sa’ar. A draft of the statement, seen by The Irish Times, commits the EU to contribute to an international effort to rebuild Gaza.
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EU leaders and diplomats were shocked by US president Donald Trump’s comments about the US “taking over” Gaza, relocating Palestinians and then redeveloping the land.
The joint EU statement set to be read out at the start of discussions with Sa’ar states: “Displaced Gazans should be ensured a safe and dignified return to their homes in Gaza.”
The statement outlines the EU “strongly condemns” recent escalations in the West Bank and “deeply deplores” the unacceptable number of civilians killed during the fighting in Gaza. The EU will criticise Israel for banning the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, Unrwa, which is seen as a crucial provider of basic services in Gaza and the West Bank.
The meeting will also discuss wider developments in the Middle East and EU-Israel bilateral relations.
The meeting is taking place as part of the EU’s “association agreement” with Israel, which governs relations between the two. A year ago Ireland and Spain called for the agreement to be reviewed, to see if Israel’s actions in Gaza contravened commitments to respect human rights. That request failed to win broad political support.
“This is an opportunity to have frank discussions ... but the review of the agreement is not on the table,” one senior EU diplomat said of the meeting.
Despite months of work to arrange the EU-Israel council, the spotlight will be elsewhere on Monday, as EU foreign ministers are to debate committing more support to Ukraine.
There is a renewed sense of urgency due to fears that Trump is pushing Ukraine towards a settlement that ends its war with Russia on Moscow’s terms. “If this is not a wake-up call I don’t know what is ... We have to get our act together,” a diplomat from one EU state said.
Ministers are to discuss proposals from Kallas for EU states to come up with several billion euro to fund more ammunition, anti-aircraft defences and equipment for Ukraine. Though resistance from Hungary’s pro-Trump leader, Viktor Orban, may scupper attempts to take any decisions.
