EU’s chief diplomat Josep Borrell said an emergency meeting of the bloc’s foreign ministers will be convened on Tuesday afternoon (10 October) on the situation in the Middle East after the Hamas attack on Israel.
Tuesday’s talks will be held via videoconference, chaired by Borrell from Muscat, Oman, where he is currently participating in a planned EU-GCC Joint Council, with EU foreign ministers joining both in person and online.
The aim will be to address “the situation in Israel and in the region after the recent events” and “next steps”, EU’s lead foreign affairs spokesperson, Peter Stano, told reporters.
The step comes after the Iran-backed militant group Hamas launched the multi-pronged assault on Israel in the early hours of Saturday (7 October).
More than 700 Israelis have been killed and at least 100 kidnapped in the assault that has left the country reeling and sparked fears of a broader escalation in the region. The reprisal bombing campaign by Israel in Gaza has killed 493 people, according to Palestinian officials.
European leaders condemned Hamas’s surprise attack on Israel and underlined Israel’s right to defend itself. Turkey said it is ready to help de-escalate the tensions, possibly through a mediator role.
The EU is a major donor to Palestine and has pledged €1.18 billion in financial support until 2024.
EU officials are also currently discussing how the Hamas attack on Israel “might affect our current and our future development assistance,” European Commission spokeswoman Ana Pisonero told reporters in Brussels.
“EU funding supports most essential services for the Palestinian population and contributes direct financing also to the Palestinian authority,” she added.
“Whatever adjustment of the EU position and reaction to what is still going on on the ground will come from that meeting (Tuesday) in the form of an agreed EU position,” Stano added.
The European Commission insists that none of the support has gone to fund Hamas or any other militant group.
Germany debated earlier on Sunday whether it should stop aid to Palestinians following the biggest attack on Israel in years by the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, with the government saying it was reviewing the way it spent development funds in the region.
Source: Euractiv.com
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