MADRID: Spain and Ireland’s prime ministers asked the European Commission on Wednesday to conduct an urgent review of Israel’s violations human rights obligations in Gaza, as international pressure mounted for Israel to postpone an assault on Rafah, a densely populated southern border city.
The two leaders, who, together with Belgium, have been Europe’s most vocal critics of Israeli operations in Gaza since the five-month conflict began, stated that striking Rafah constituted “a grave and imminent threat that the international community must urgently confront.”
In a joint letter published on the Spanish government’s official website, the Prime Ministers reiterated their call for an immediate ceasefire and the release of all hostages. They emphasized the critical need for facilitating access to essential humanitarian supplies to alleviate the suffering of civilians caught in the conflict.
Reacting to the Hamas attack on October 7 last year, Israel launched ground, air, and sea offensive against Palestinians, leading to a sharp escalation in violence.
The Palestinian health ministry says that at least 28,576 Palestinians, mostly women and children, have been killed in Israeli strikes since then.
A Spanish government source expressed confidence that European countries are uniting around a harder posture and that the European Commission will take more tangible measures in response to Israel’s activities in Gaza.
According to the source, Alexander De Croo, the Prime Minister of Belgium, who now holds the presidency of the EU Council, tweeted on Tuesday that it might result in an “unmitigated humanitarian catastrophe”.
