Twenty-five countries including Britain, France and a host of European nations issued a joint statement on Monday saying the war in Gaza “must end now” and Israel must comply with international law.
The foreign ministers of countries including Australia, Canada and Japan said “the suffering of civilians in Gaza has reached new depths” and condemned “the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children, seeking to meet their most basic needs of water and food.”
“The Israeli government’s aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity,” the statement said.
“The Israeli government’s denial of essential humanitarian assistance to the civilian population is unacceptable. Israel must comply with its obligations under international humanitarian law,” it added.
The signatories included the foreign ministers of about 20 European countries as well as Canada, Australia and New Zealand, and the EU commissioner for equality, preparedness and crisis management.
The US and Germany did not sign the statement.
The signatories called for an immediate ceasefire, adding they are prepared to take action to support a political pathway to peace in the region.
Gaza’s population of more than 2 million Palestinians is in a catastrophic humanitarian crisis, now relying largely on the limited aid allowed into the territory. Many people have been displaced multiple times.
Hamas triggered the war when militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 others hostage. Fifty remain in Gaza, but fewer than half are thought to be alive.
Israel’s military offensive has killed more than 59,000 Palestinians, according to Gaza’s Health Ministry. Its count doesn’t distinguish between militants and civilians but the ministry says more than half of the dead are women and children. The ministry is part of the Hamas government, but the UN and other international organisations see it as the most reliable source of data on casualties.
Israel and Hamas have been holding ceasefire talks in Qatar. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly asserted that expanding Israel’s military operations in Gaza will pressure Hamas in negotiations. (AP)
