Israel wants to respond to the criticism of the war in Gaza that Prime Ministers Alexander de Croo and Pedro Sanchez expressed during their visit to the Middle East in recent days. Comments in line with the positions expressed by the Belgian government in recent weeks.
Published on: November 25, 2023 – 4:21 p.m
1 minute
With our correspondent in Brussels, Laura Broulard
At the Rafah border crossing, Alexander de Croo called the destruction of Gaza “unacceptable” and called on Israel to respect international humanitarian law in its military operations.
The Belgian Prime Minister initially strongly condemned the atrocities committed by Hamas and supported Israel’s right to defend itself. Finally, he called for a permanent ceasefire in Gaza.
At the Rafah border crossing with a message of solidarity and humanity.
There is no time to waste in this ceasefire.
The only way out of this conflict is dialogue.
Without them all pages are lost. pic.twitter.com/lscoj8RvQS
— Alexander De Croo 🇧🇪🇪🇺 (@alexanderdecroo) November 24, 2023
For his part, Pedro Sanchez called for the “recognition of the State of Palestine by the international community and Israel.” Comments that were poorly received in Israel and that made Benjamin Netanyahu react.
Let’s replace violence with hope.
We cannot allow all Israelis and Palestinians to live under the constant threat of conflict.
I believe the moment of final separation is an endless cycle of violence that condenses a… pic.twitter.com/sMWEwco68g
— Pedro Sanchez (@sanchezcastejon) November 24, 2023
But in view of the growing controversy, the Belgian Prime Minister is sticking to his course. “I stand by my statements. No more civilian deaths,” he responded on Twitter on Saturday, November 25th.
Earlier this month he had already questioned the proportionality of Israel’s response to Gaza. While Deputy Prime Minister Petra de Sutter called for sanctions against Israel in the federal parliament, the Flemish Democrats and left-wing parties supported a bill aimed at boycotting products from the occupied territories.
Belgium assures that it only supports an end to violence and respect for international law. In any case, Alexander de Croo announced in the press that the Israeli ambassador would be invited to clarify the situation.
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