Even in the European Commission there are those who start using the word genocide to define Israel’s actions in Gaza. Vice -president Teresa Ribera, Ursula von der Leyen number two, said that hunger, displacement and killings in Gaza “resemble a very” on a genocide. “If it is not a genocide, it looks very likely to the definition used to express its meaning,” he said to politician.
The spokesperson brake
“What we are seeing is a concrete population that is targeted, killed and condemned to die of hunger,” said the Spanish socialist. “A concrete population is confined, without houses, destroyed, without food, water or medicines, to which access is prohibited, and subject to bombings and shots even when trying to obtain humanitarian aid. Any humanity is absent and witnesses are not allowed”, has increased the rebellious dose.
But to the request to explain if that was the position of the entire executive, a spokesman for the Commission has thrown water on the fire. “The EU was very clear on Gaza, the killing of civilians is indefensible”, but “on the word genocide it is up to international courts to make an evaluation,” he said.
No concrete action towards Israel
But apart from the words by the EU has not yet been undertaken any concrete action against Israel, at least to put pressure on the government of Benjamin Netanyahu to allow the access of humanitarian aid in sufficient quantities, with the Gaza strip which is now on the threshold of a “widespread famine”, according to the United Nations.
EU Member States have not yet given the green light to the suspension, albeit only partial, of Israel’s participation in the Horizon research program. Green light that is missing for the opposition mainly of Germany and Italy.
Aid promised but never arrived
And this despite the fact that Israel has made an agreement with Brussels, promising to allow the influx of greater quantities of humanitarian aid, an increase that not only did not take place sufficiently, but on which there is also no transparency by Tel Aviv.
“What I can say at this stage is that we are not allowed to access, or rather, our trucks are not allowed to access to the extent that we would like” Gaza to be allowed, said the commission spokesman, Anna-Kaisa Itkonen, in briefing with printing.
“The Israeli authorities continue not to authorize or allow the EU access to Gaza and, consequently, the European Union, and more specifically our Directorate General for Humanitarian aid, Echo, could not directly verify all these data,” he said.
“We are not present on the spot, so we rely on the information of our partners, in particular of the United Nations. So, we monitor the information we receive from the United Nations and from our partners and evaluate all these trends in more detailed way”, he continued.
