6 European countries: Israel's attack on the city of Gaza causes unbearable fatalities

The foreign ministers of Iceland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Norway, Slovenia, and Spain strongly condemned the recent Israeli aggression on the city of Gaza, affirming that this attack is causing unbearable fatalities among civilians. This was stated in a joint statement issued by them following the announcement by the occupying army of the commencement of a severe assault on the city.

In the statement, the ministers warned that the intensification of Israeli military operations in Gaza endangers the lives of Israeli hostages held by Hamas and leads to unbearable deaths among Palestinian civilians, including children, women, and the elderly.

The ministers also condemned the forced displacement of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, considering it a blatant violation of international law. They emphasized that the systematic destruction of essential civilian infrastructure in Gaza, including sites that serve as shelters for displaced civilians, is unacceptable.

The European foreign ministers urged Israel to immediately halt military operations, stressing the importance of reaching a permanent ceasefire, releasing the hostages, and allowing unhindered access to humanitarian aid throughout Gaza.

In the early hours of Friday, the occupying army intensified its air, ground, and naval strikes on neighborhoods in the city of Gaza, which is home to about one million Palestinians, as part of its plan to occupy it and complete the genocide it has been committing against Palestinians for 23 months.

On August 8, the Israeli government approved a plan to gradually reoccupy the Gaza Strip entirely, starting with the city of Gaza. The ministers expressed their concern regarding the integrated phased classification of food security, which confirmed the existence of famine in the Gaza governorate.

The European ministers called on Israel to fulfill its humanitarian obligations and allow UN agencies and NGOs to provide widespread assistance, as famine currently affects more than half a million people in Gaza.

Since October 7, 2023, the occupation has been committing genocide in Gaza, including killing, starvation, and destruction, ignoring international calls and orders from the International Court of Justice to cease these actions. This genocide has resulted in thousands of martyrs and injured, in addition to hundreds of thousands of displaced persons.

The European ministers also expressed their concern regarding the expansion of settlements in the West Bank and the rising violence of Zionist settlers, affirming that these developments undermine the prospects for a two-state solution.

According to Palestinian reports, the number of settlers in the West Bank has reached about 770,000, distributed across more than 180 settlements and 256 outposts, complicating the situation in the region.