Gaza cease-fire??? Ha Ha...

EU leaders call for Gaza cease-fire amid ‘humanitarian tragedy’

The U.S. will bring forward a U.N. draft resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza on Friday.

BY PAUL DALLISON, BARBARA MOENS AND CLEA CAULCUTT

After 166 days of Israel’s retaliatory airstrikes and ground operations in Gaza, EU leaders called for a cease-fire, showcasing unanimity on the matter for the first time since October.

The 27 European Union countries have been divided on Israel’s war in Gaza and have failed to show a united front until now. Some countries, such as Germany, have shifted their position on calling for a cease-fire.

In the end, it was the news that the U.S. will propose a resolution at the U.N. Security Council on Friday calling for a cease-fire that appeared to move the dial in Europe at a summit in Brussels.

In part, Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo told reporters, “gradually other countries joined our position and the fact that the US have adopted [this position] too played a part.”

The call comes as Israel’s operations have killed more than 30,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Health Ministry, which includes thousands of women and children. The EU’s top diplomat Josep Borrell and aid groups also have warned of the risk of famine in Gaza. Half of the population in Gaza, which tops 2 million people, is on the brink of famine, an international early warning system set up by governments and NGOs said.

On Friday, the United States will bring a U.N. draft resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire in Gaza and an Israel-Hamas hostage deal to a Security Council vote, also for the first time in the nearly six months since the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza began. Previously, the U.S. has repeatedly vetoed U.N. Security Council resolutions to end the war.

The famine crisis is deepening as Israeli forces press a devastating ground offensive in retribution against the October 7 attacks, in which Hamas militants killed 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took around 250 hostages.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu denied in a March 10 interview with Axel Springer, POLITICO’s parent company, that people were starving in Gaza. He blamed Hamas for the lack of humanitarian aid entering the occupied territory.

European Council President Charles Michel on Thursday called the situation “a humanitarian tragedy.”

EU leaders have called for “an immediate humanitarian pause leading to a sustainable cease-fire,” Michel said after the summit talks.

Michel added that “full & safe humanitarian access into Gaza is essential to provide the civilian population with life-saving assistance in a catastrophic situation in Gaza.”

A text approved by all 27 leaders also calls for “the unconditional release of all hostages and the provision of humanitarian assistance.”

The statement adds: “The European Council is deeply concerned about the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and its disproportionate effect on civilians, particularly children, as well as the imminent risk of famine caused by the insufficient entry of aid into Gaza.”

The U.S. is planning to construct its own floating dock, with a military ship en route carrying building equipment. Washington has also been parachuting food packages into Gaza, along with France and other countries as Israel blocks land access for aid to be delivered to Palestinians.

Experts warn that neither sea nor air deliveries will make up for blocked land convoys. Israel has controlled Gaza’s air, land and sea borders since 2007, and since the start of the war has repeatedly cut off access to water, electricity, food and fuel.

In a press conference after the summit, Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned about escalation of the conflict in the Middle East.

Netanyahu said in the interview with Axel Springer that he intends to press ahead with an invasion of the city of Rafah on the southern border of the Gaza Strip in defiance of United States President Joe Biden, who has warned such an offensive would be a “red line.”

Michel called on the Israeli government to refrain from launching an operation in Rafah, where Israel directed 1.4 million Palestinians during their bombardment and operation in the enclave.

“We believe in the international law, we believe in the international humanitarian law, and that’s why everything must be done to convince, to make sure that there is a real possibility for more humanitarian access,” he said at the press conference.

Reuters reported that the latest version of the U.N. draft resolution calls for an “immediate and sustained ceasefire” lasting around six weeks, saying that would protect civilians and allow for the delivery of humanitarian aid.