Over the past week, the entire world has been shocked by the brutal killings and kidnappings of hundreds of Israeli civilians by Hamas and the Israeli retaliatory attacks on Gaza with indiscriminate bombardment of civilians by the Israeli army.
A host of leading Palestinian, Israeli and international human rights organisations have repeatedly stressed that Israel’s suppression of Palestinian rights violates a number of international legal standards and can provoke radicalisation and violence.
One example of this radicalisation is Israel’s election of one of the most anti-Palestinian governments in the country’s history. Also in the past year, the rhetoric of outright ethnic cleansing has openly entered the political discourse.
Palestinians have been living in a region closed off from the world by the Israeli authorities for 16 years, with 45 per cent unemployment. Even before the fighting began, Gaza was recognised as uninhabitable. The actions of the Israeli government led inevitably to disaster. In the year 2023 to October alone, the Israeli army killed 200 Palestinians.
Attacks by settlers, confident that Israeli justice will never prosecute them, are on the rise. Palestinian homes are being demolished and replaced by Israeli settlements. In such a development, a sharp escalation of the conflict was entirely to be expected.
After the Hamas invasion, EU countries began to express support for Israel. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said that the EU “fully supports Israel’s right to defend itself,” and German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that “the only place is on Israel’s side.” Certainly, the violence by Hamas militants must be condemned, but the fact that attacks on civilians on both sides are a violation of international humanitarian law cannot be overlooked, and all those responsible must be held accountable.
However, a number of EU countries not only supported Israel, but also took steps to suspend aid to Gaza civilians. Initially, the EU was also prepared to go down this path.
All the ongoing developments in the Middle East should be a wake-up call for the EU. The current grave situation in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories is an opportunity for Europe to demonstrate its commitment to its core values of human rights and democracy.
However, there are other opinions within the EU. EU diplomatic chief Josep Borrell recently accused Israel of violating international law by imposing a complete blockade on the Gaza Strip. He called on the international community to separate Hamas and the Palestinian population. He also pointed to Israel’s continued violation of international humanitarian law and human rights in the occupied Palestinian territories.
EU countries must ensure that perpetrators of war crimes are brought to justice. They should publicly support the International Criminal Court in its investigation of war crimes in Palestine and invite member states to support the chronically underfunded and understaffed court. Consideration should also be given to supporting the court in its “Advisory Opinion on the Consequences of the Occupation” – by providing legal expertise during oral arguments.
Finally, the UN Special Rapporteur on the Occupied Palestinian Territories has been unable to fulfil his role as an observer for many years. Supporting his access to the Occupied Palestinian Territories is essential.
