TruthNews

EU Presses Israel To Lift Gaza Blockade At Once

International Christian Embassy Jerusalem, 14 Jun 2010

The European Union's foreign affairs committee urged Israel on Monday to lift its arms blockade on the Gaza Strip and open all Gaza crossings immediately, insisting the current embargo is "unacceptable [and] cannot continue."

Delegates from the EU's 27 member states met in Luxembourg this afternoon to discuss ways they could contribute to opening up better access to Gaza through properly supervised crossings. An EU statement released afterwards called for the "immediate, prolonged and unconditional" opening of all Gaza crossings, in order to allow humanitarian aid, goods and people in and out of the Strip.

The EU statement also acknowledged Israel’s "legitimate security concerns" to stop arms smuggling to Hamas, while denouncing the Islamist militia’s rocket attacks on Israeli civilians.

The council also urged the immediate release of kidnapped IDF soldier Gilad Shalit, saying that Hamas should - at the very least - allow him Red Cross visits.

European diplomats said they expect Israel will soon update its list of Gaza contraband items, reducing the number of goods disallowed for security reasons. But Israel has apparently rejected a European proposal last week to have Gaza-bound maritime shipments inspected in Cyprus.

Ahead of the summit of EU foreign ministers, Israeli officials argued that the blockade is working and now is not the time to lift it, as Hamas is facing serious financial difficulties and losing popularity. European diplomats also acknowledged that both Egypt and the Palestinian Authority are opposed to a sudden lifting the blockade, no matter what they might say for the benefit of their own populations.

But European leaders were also under a great deal of public pressure at home to act, EU diplomats claimed, especially due to the recent mass street protests against Israel in European cities and the presence of many EU citizens on board the flotilla.