The dramatic situation that has been experienced for the past two months in the Middle East cannot be answered with words alone, facts are also necessary. This was assured yesterday by the head of European diplomacy, Josep Borrell, after a meeting of foreign ministers, and announced that he will propose sanctions against the extremist settlers in the West Bank and the Islamist organization Hamas.
“There are too many acts of violence and too many deaths”, lamented Borrell after announcing that, despite the fact that there is still no unanimity, he will propose a list of possible settlers to sanction them for “violent activities” in the framework of sanctions against people that violate human rights. A regime of measures that has existed for two years.
The tension and violence experienced in the West Bank, with constant attacks, disappearances and threats from extremist settlers, has caused the European Union to be open to discussing a list. The United States, Israel’s biggest international supporter, has already sanctioned violent settlers.
Belgium and France have already shown the intention to take measures unilaterally and to sanction the settlers individually. Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib said she would propose a ban on the entry of sanctioned settlers into the Schengen area.
The Spanish Minister of Foreign Affairs, José Manuel Albares, assured that Spain supports the sanctions, also against, because both, the violent settlers and the terrorist organization, “are enemies of peace” and of the future creation of two states The Spanish official announced the evacuation of six Spanish-Palestinians and six of their relatives, a total of twelve people, who were able to leave Rafah.
Among the ministers there was indeed a consensus to sanction the Islamic organization Hamas, considered a terrorist by the EU since 2005.
“Hamas has been on the list as a terrorist organization for the EU for a long time, and, without a doubt, what happened on October 7 made merit for it to be treated as such,” argued Borrell. According to the high representative, “there was no opposition” and he will prepare a list of measures, among which is being studied to limit foreign funding to the organization, along the lines used against other terrorist organizations sanctioned by the EU This is in addition to last week’s inclusion in the sanction list of two senior military commanders of the Islamist group in response to the October 7 attacks. This is Muhammad Deif, commander-in-chief of the military arm of Hamas since 2002, and his deputy Marwan Issa. Both are subject to the freezing of assets they hold in the EU.
The head of diplomacy maintains his commitment to a stabilization plan in the region, which “was very positively received” by the ministers. In this, the Palestinian Authority is supported and the forced displacement of the population is condemned, and the goal of the creation of two states.
Borrell described the situation in Gaza as “catastrophic and apocalyptic”. “60%-70% of the dead are civilians (…), 85% of the population is internally displaced”, he denounced, and compared the situation of ruin and rubble in the strip with that of ” German cities during the Second World War”.