European Countries Urge Israel To Allow Humanitarian Aid Enter Gaza
Three European countries, the UK, France and Germany, have urged Israel to allow the uninterrupted delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
The Israeli government had on Sunday blocked all humanitarian aid from entering Gaza following the expiration of the first phase of its ceasefire agreement with Hamas.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office, in a statement, said the move is in response to Hamas’s move to reject a proposal by U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff to extend the ceasefire which ended on March 1.
However, in a joint statement, the three European nations called on Israel to “abide by its international obligations to ensure full, rapid, safe, and unhindered provision of humanitarian assistance to the population in Gaza.”
The countries warned against using aid as a “political tool” stating that blocking essential supplies could violate international humanitarian law.
“Humanitarian aid should never be contingent on a ceasefire or used as a political tool,” the statement read, while describing conditions in Gaza as “catastrophic.”
The initial ceasefire, which began on January 19, halted 15 months of conflict between Israel and Hamas. During this period, Hamas released 33 Israeli and five Thai hostages in exchange for approximately 1,900 Palestinian prisoners and detainees.
However, discussions on the second phase of the agreement, which involves the release of all remaining living hostages, have made little progress.
The war began on October 7, 2023, after Hamas launched a large-scale attack on Israel, killing approximately 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages.
In response, Israel launched an air and ground campaign in Gaza, which the Palestinian health ministry said has killed over 46,000 people.
The European nations stressed the importance of maintaining the ceasefire, ensuring the continued flow of humanitarian aid, and securing the release of all remaining hostages.
“All hostages must be unconditionally released, and Hamas must end their degrading and humiliating treatment,” they stated.
European Countries Urge Israel To Allow Humanitarian Aid Enter Gaza is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
