‘Time for EU to act’ on Gaza: humanitarian chief

BRUSSELS: The EU’s humanitarian chief Hadja Lahbib on Wednesday urged the bloc to take tougher action over the war in Gaza as divisions among member states stall moves to punish Israel.

“We are at a turning point and now it’s time for the EU to act in a way that matches its international stature,” Lahbib, European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, told journalists.

“Now it’s time for the EU to find a collective voice on Gaza.”

Splits within the 27-nation bloc between countries backing Israel and those favouring the Palestinians have seen the EU often left hamstrung in the face of the dire humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

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“We cannot stand by and simply watch innocent civilians, aid workers, journalists being killed and starving to death,” Lahbib said.

“Saving lives takes the political courage to find a strong voice that reflects our values and principles.”

EU foreign ministers meeting in Denmark this week will discuss a proposal to suspend funding to Israeli start-ups as punishment for the situation in Gaza.

But the bloc has so far failed to garner the majority needed to take that step – let alone move ahead with more forceful measures against Israel.

The EU’s top diplomat Kaja Kallas announced a deal in July with Israel to increase the flow of aid into Gaza but so far it has not met expectations.

Lahbib said that the situation had improved “very, very partially” but that the aid getting into the territory remained a “drop in the ocean”.

The United Nations declared a famine in Gaza on Friday, blaming the “systematic obstruction” of aid by Israel during its nearly two-year war with the Palestinian group Hamas.

“My role is to denounce and to say loudly what is happening there. This is a tragedy,” Lahbib said.

“We will be judged by history and by our grandchildren. That’s for sure.”

Out of 251 hostages seized during the attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel has killed at least 62,819 Palestinians, most of them civilians, according to figures from the health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza that the United Nations considers reliable.