Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp said Wednesday that the Netherlands is "drawing a line in the sand" over Israel’s actions in Gaza and is insisting on a review of a European Union pact governing trade ties with the country.
Israeli strikes across Gaza killed at least 59 people on Wednesday, including women and children, hospital officials said, as Israel prepares to ramp up its campaign against Hamas in a devastating war now entering its 20th month.
With Israel blocking any form of aid — including food and medicine – into Gaza for the past two months, aid groups have warned that Gaza’s civilian population is facing starvation.
Veldkamp expressed concern that Israel’s blockade on food and aid entering Gaza continues, that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu wants to intensify the war and that some ministers have suggested that Israel should occupy the territory.
Speaking at a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Warsaw, Veldkamp said that the Netherlands is "drawing a line in the sand because the situation in the Gaza Strip is dismal, a catastrophic humanitarian situation."
Once a strong backer of Israel, the Netherlands has taken an increasingly tougher line in recent months.
"The chances for a new ceasefire have become very, very limited," Veldkamp said. "In view of the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip and action of the Israeli authorities, which go against international humanitarian law, I believe that this signal has to be given."
Ties between the EU and Israel — which are major trading partners — are governed by a so-called Association Agreement. It stipulates that their ties "shall be based on respect for human rights and democratic principles."
The Dutch government intends to block the agreement pending an EU review into whether the Israeli government is complying with the pact, which entered force in 2000.
Israel’s offensive has killed more than 52,000 people in Gaza, many of them women and children, according to Palestinian health officials. The officials do not distinguish between combatants and civilians in their count.
The war began when Hamas-led fighters attacked southern Israel, killing 1,200 people and taking about 250 hostages. Israel blames Hamas for the rising death toll in Gaza because it operates from civilian infrastructure, including schools.
The latest bloodshed came days after Israel approved a plan to intensify its operations in the Palestinian enclave. It would include seizing Gaza, holding on to captured territories, forcibly displacing Palestinians to southern Gaza and taking control of aid distribution along with private security companies.
Israel is also calling up tens of thousands of reserve soldiers to carry out the plan.
Other ministers were also worried about developments in Gaza.
Belgian Foreign Minister Maxime Prévot said that "it’s time for the European Union and for the whole international community to wake up. Honestly, what we are seeing is an absolute shame. It’s not acceptable."
Luxembourg Foreign Minister Xavier Bettel said he had spent a lot of time in the region in recent months, but that his pleas to Israel to show restraint have fallen on deaf ears.
"I have the feeling they’re listening to no one. I fully understand they have pressure, and Hamas, and they still have hostages. But we have to be around the table to see how we can find solutions," Bettel told reporters.
"We need to find a solution on that and not to give the impression to the Palestinians that at the end of the day, they won’t exist anymore, neither as a country nor as population," he said.
Bettel and his EU counterparts are expected to discuss the Dutch initiative on Thursday, but it’s unclear whether the 27-nation bloc will take a stand. Last year, Ireland and Spain tried to press their EU partners to examine whether Israel has broken the rules.
The EU is deeply divided over how to respond to the conflict, and it holds little leverage over Israel. Austria, Germany and Hungary have tended to back the Israeli government, while Ireland and Spain have been more vocal in their support for the Palestinians.
