Borrell: Israel's isolation and siege of Gaza is inconsistent with the laws of war

2023-10-18 18:44:27, Kosova & Bota CNA

Borrell: Israel's isolation and siege of Gaza is inconsistent with the laws

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said today that Israel's isolation and siege of Gaza is not in line with international laws in cases of conflict. He emphasized that the killing of civilians in Gaza should be condemned in the same way as the attacks on Israel. His statements preceded the comments of the President of the European Commission, Ursula Von Der Leyen, who said that the European Union supports Israel's right to defend itself, but this must be done in accordance with international laws and protecting the lives of civilians.

The head of the European Union's foreign policy, Josep Borrell, underlined the need for the killing of civilians in Gaza to be punished in the same way as

attacks on Israel are being condemned. He criticized the interruption of water supply and other basic needs for civilians in Gaza, stressing that such actions contradict international laws in the event of conflicts.

"There are rules for war. The rules are defined in international laws and we have said several times in the past in cases of conflict, cutting off water and other basic needs for the population is not in accordance with the laws of war. As we speak, there is no water left in Gaza. More than 3 thousand people have died, a quarter of them children. We cannot hold the entire population in Gaza responsible for the criminal actions of Hamas," he said.

He said that the siege and isolation of the Gaza Strip is not in accordance with international humanitarian law and that the European Union had condemned other similar cases.

"We condemn the terrible terrorist attacks, but I believe we must equally condemn the deaths of civilians in Gaza. Because condemning one tragedy should not prevent us from condemning another. The compassion we show for the victims of terrorist attacks should not and does not prevent us from showing the same compassion for the other dead," said Mr. Borrel.

Speaking after Mr Borrel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen reaffirmed that the European Union supports Israel's right to defend itself, saying Israel must do so in accordance with international humanitarian law and by protecting civilian lives. .

"Europe stands by Israel at this difficult moment. I think it was important to personally deliver this message of solidarity to Israel just days after the attack. "Only if we understand Israel's pain and accept its right to defend itself will we have the credibility to say that Israel must act as a democratic country, in accordance with international humanitarian laws," she said.

Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission

Some European officials and lawmakers criticized Ms von der Leyen, who visited Israel on Friday 13 October, for not declaring, as other EU leaders have, that the European Union expects Israel to respect international humanitarian law in actions in response to attacks by the militant group Hamas.

Zonaj Von Der Leyen took such a position publicly for the first time, over the weekend.

Today she condemned the explosion at a hospital in Gaza that killed hundreds of Palestinians and spoke about Israel's efforts to protect civilian lives and the need not to prevent the expansion of instability in the region.

"We know that the actions of Hamas risk affecting the historic rapprochement of relations between Israel and the Arab countries. But this can be avoided. Instability can be avoided. The dialogue between Israel and its neighbors can and must continue. This moment of war should be just as much a moment to continue diplomacy and engage even more with Israel and other countries in the region," said Mrs. Von Der Leyen.

While the European Union and the member countries of the union have jointly condemned the attacks by Hamas, which left 1300 Israelis dead, they have been divided in other political positions and the actions taken after the attacks.

This division of positions has pointed to long-standing divisions among the European Union over the Middle East and strong limits on its influence in the region.

It has equally undermined the positions of the European Union that the union has the right to be treated as an extremely important geopolitical actor./ VOA