Isreal's plans for Gaza "worrying," Dutch PM says; May violate EU treaty: Foreign Min.
Prime Minister Dick Schoof has, for the first time, expressed his concerns about Isreal’s plans to invade and occupy the entire Gaza strip and “relocate” the Palestinian population. The plans are “worrying,” the Dutch Prime Minister said after questions from RTL Nieuws. “As far as the Cabinet is concerned, this is not the way forward.” Minister Caspar Veldkamp of Foreign Affairs has also asked the EU to investigate whether Israel is violating the EU-Israel Association Agreement by not allowing any aid into Gaza.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a video message announcing an “intensive military operation” in Gaza in which Israel will occupy the entire coastal strip. According to him, the population will be “relocated.”
According to Schoof, Netanyahu’s plans have “far-reaching humanitarian consequences,” mentioning first the Israeli hostages in Gaza and then the Palestinians who haven’t had access to aid in weeks while constantly being bombed. “Israel must adhere to international law,” Schoof said.
He was giving a press conference with Belgian Prime Minister Bart De Wever, who said that the situation in Gaza is almost impossible to watch. Images of starving children in Gaza lead to “only one human reaction,” he said. “That this has to stop.”
Foreign Minister Veldkamp has written to the European Union foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, asking her to investigate whether Israel is still adhering to the conditions of the EU-Israel Association Agreement. According to Veldkamp, Israel is violating Article 2 of the agreement by not allowing aid into Gaza and cutting off the power supply. Gaza has had no access to aid or electricity in weeks.
Israel announced a new system for distributing aid in Gaza, but Veldkamp has little confidence in it. “Although many details are still unknown, this system does not seem to be in line with the humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality, and independence,” he wrote to Kallas, according to RTL Nieuws.
A “broader discussion and reflection of our relationship with Israel is needed,” Veldkamp said in the letter. He said he will not agree to an extension of the EU-Israel Action Plan, which expands cooperation between the EU and Israel and requires unanimity for an extension, until this investigation is complete.
The Dutch Cabinet has very slowly been increasing pressure on Israel in recent weeks, though it still opposes the idea of sanctions against the country. The coalition parties are divided on the topic, with the PVV and BBB fully supporting Israel and the VVD and NSC being more critical.
In the meantime, Israel has killed at least 51,157 people in Gaza, including at least 17,400 children, as of April 20th, Al Jazeera reported based on figures from the Palestinian Ministry of Health. At least 116,724 people are hurt, and thousands are missing under the rubble, presumed dead. Around 290,000 children are “on the brink of death” from starvation, Gaza’s Government Media Office (GMO) said on Sunday.
