In a letter published on 22 July, 34 former EU ambassadors called on the European Union to act in the face of “the horrifying spectacle of Israel carrying out, on a daily basis, atrocity crimes against the Palestinian people – above all in Gaza, but also in the occupied West Bank”.
They call on all EU leaders and governments, “especially those who prevented the Foreign Affairs Council, 15 July, from acting against Israel’s egregious humanitarian and human rights violations, to take all necessary and feasible measures under international, European and national law, to bring these atrocities to an end” (see EUROPE 13681/2).
“The world will remember how the EU and its member states respond to this catastrophic tragedy. Silence and neutrality in the face of genocide constitutes complicity. Inaction emboldens perpetrators and betrays every principle the Union and its member states claim to uphold”, warn the ambassadors.
In their view, the measures should include the resumption, “immediately at scale”, of international aid deliveries, in full respect of the core principles of international humanitarian law.
The suspension with “immediate effect” of all exports of arms and dual-use goods to Israel, a ban on trade with Israeli settlements and the prohibition of EU and Member State commercial and investment relations with any entity doing business in or benefiting from the settlements are also put forward.
The ambassadors are calling for the suspension of all preferential commercial agreements with Israel under the Association Agreement and the cancellation of Israel’s participation in Horizon Europe and all EU dual-use research, academic and technology programmes.
They also want targeted sanctions to be imposed on Israeli ministers, government officials, military commanders and violent settlers responsible for war crimes, crimes against humanity, facilitating genocide and State-sanctioned terrorism.
Finally, the ambassadors called on Member States to recognise the Palestinian State at the United Nations conference in New York on 28 and 29 July.
Member States’ ambassadors to the EU (Coreper) are due to again discuss the implementation of the agreement between the EU and Israel on the supply of humanitarian aid to Gaza, on Wednesday.
See the letter: https://aeur.eu/f/i0y (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)