{"id":296218,"date":"2025-06-02T12:01:23","date_gmt":"2025-06-02T11:01:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/?p=296218"},"modified":"2025-05-27T06:42:30","modified_gmt":"2025-05-27T05:42:30","slug":"diplomatic-tsunami-nears-as-europe-begins-to-act-against-israels-complete-madness-in-gaza","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/2025\/06\/diplomatic-tsunami-nears-as-europe-begins-to-act-against-israels-complete-madness-in-gaza\/","title":{"rendered":"\u2018Diplomatic Tsunami\u2019 Nears as Europe Begins to Act against Israel\u2019s \u2018Complete Madness\u2019 in Gaza"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"\"<\/a>

European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas arrives for a meeting of EU defense ministers at the European Council building in Brussels, 20 May 2025.<\/p><\/div>\n

Citing the ‘unbearable’ Gaza crisis, European leaders are warning of sanctions against Israel. Netanyahu’s limited aid move has failed to ease concerns, with one diplomat calling it a ‘disaster.’ An expert said the steps further isolate Israel as a pariah state misaligned with EU values.<\/span><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

22 May 2025\u00a0<\/em>–\u00a0Jonathan Lis and Liza Rozovsky report in Haaretz <\/em>on 21 May 2025:<\/p>\n

The wave of diplomatic incidents involving Israel throughout Tuesday has been exceptional by any standard.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe situation in Gaza is unbearable,\u201d a foreign diplomat familiar with the international efforts against Israel told Haaretz. \u201cIt\u2019s time to stop. Images of children scrambling for a plate of rice, reports of real hunger, and the fact that Israel isn\u2019t doing enough to facilitate humanitarian aid make it impossible for us to stand by any longer,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Since Monday, crisis has followed crisis: the leaders of France, the U.K., and Canada announced they may consider sanctions against Israel; 25 Western countries issued a joint statement expressing concern over Gaza; the U.K. government suspended talks on a free trade agreement with Israel; British Foreign Secretary David Lammy announced sanctions on Israeli settlers and summoned Israeli Ambassador Tzipi Hotovely for a formal reprimand.<\/p>\n

At the same time, Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard declared her intent to promote sanctions against Israeli ministers \u2013 a move that was later blocked. French Foreign Minister Jean-No\u00ebl Barrot said Tuesday that he supports reconsidering the EU\u2013Israel Association Agreement. Just hours later, at the initiative of the Dutch foreign minister, EU foreign ministers gathered in Brussels to discuss suspending the agreement.<\/p>\n

Seventeen of the EU\u2019s 27 member states voted to re-examine the legal basis of the EU\u2013Israel Association Agreement. While full cancellation would require consensus and is considered unlikely, a qualified majority could suspend specific parts, such as the free trade deal that exempts Israeli exports from tariffs, or the Horizon program, which allows Israeli participation in European science and technology projects.<\/p>\n

Israeli officials took comfort in Germany, Italy, and Greece\u2019s support, which voted alongside Israel at the EU Commission. The Israeli Foreign Ministry currently doubts that the agreement will be revoked altogether but acknowledges that the decision to review it is a serious diplomatic warning.<\/p>\n

A senior Israeli official told Haaretz the developments were expected. \u201cThe statement from Kaja Kallas was unfortunate, but it could have been worse,\u201d he said of the chief EU diplomat\u2019s comments. \u201cThe past 24 hours were all part of a planned ambush we knew about. This was a coordinated sequence of moves ahead of the EU meeting in Brussels, and thanks to joint efforts by our ambassadors and the foreign minister, we managed to moderate the outcome,\u201d the official said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe bullet has left the barrel,\u201d said Maya Sion-Tzidkiyahu, Director of the Israel\u2013Europe Relations Program at the Mitvim Institute and lecturer at the Hebrew University\u2019s European Forum. \u201cThere\u2019s no telling where this will lead or how the legal review will conclude. This step further isolates Israel as a pariah state, losing some of its closest friends in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to her, \u201cThis shift happened fast, in just two weeks, and the decision may trigger a diplomatic tsunami.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a very clear message to Israel: we\u2019ve had enough of a senseless war. You\u2019re increasingly seen as a country whose values no longer align with those of the European Union,\u201d Sion-Tzidkiyahu added.<\/p>\n

Foreign Minister Gideon Sa\u2019ar has held talks in recent days with around ten European foreign ministers and heard strong criticism from them. At Sunday\u2019s cabinet meeting, he warned ministers that European criticism could soon be accompanied by concrete actions. Israeli army officials confirmed that Israeli monitoring systems also show the humanitarian situation in Gaza nearing a red line, with immediate aid needed.<\/p>\n

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu approved the entry of aid into Gaza without delay in coordination with the U.S. As trucks began to move, Israeli officials quickly informed counterparts that Israel was indeed acting to alleviate hunger and was not relying on declarations alone. A source familiar with the details said Netanyahu plans to issue a formal statement Wednesday in response to the Western measures.<\/p>\n

Still, Israel\u2019s sudden response did little to satisfy the international community. Several European countries criticized the new aid distribution plan, set to begin in two weeks.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s complete madness,\u201d a European diplomat told Haaretz. \u201cThere\u2019s no way this will work. Israel is shutting down 400 food distribution points in Gaza and replacing them with four or five. That means 6,000 people at each point. I desperately hope they don\u2019t go through with this \u2013 it would be a disaster.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sion-Tzidkiyahu estimated that the very fact that the EU is now debating Israeli violations of international law sends a strong signal not only to international courts, but possibly even to people in Trump\u2019s orbit, who may be attuned to these messages.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead, Israeli officials are already bracing for the next flashpoint. France and Saudi Arabia are expected to convene a conference in New York in June to announce recognition of a Palestinian state. According to sources, the initiative is primarily Saudi, designed to deliver a symbolic diplomatic achievement reflecting concern for the Palestinian people. However, officials now believe the organizers are working to expand the number of countries backing the move.<\/p>\n

President Isaac Herzog, who attended the pope\u2019s inauguration in the Vatican on Sunday, made an unannounced stop in Paris for a meeting with President Emmanuel Macron. Herzog, who often carries out quiet diplomatic missions, reportedly raised both the hostage issue and Israel\u2019s concern about the French\u2013Saudi initiative. Israeli officials believe it will be difficult to stop the recognition plan, which is expected to move forward as planned.<\/p>\n

_________________________________________<\/em><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> <\/em>Jews for Justice for Palestinians is a network of Jews who are British or live in Britain, practising and secular, Zionist or not. We oppose Israeli policies that undermine the livelihoods, human, civil and political rights of the Palestinian people. We support the right of Israelis to live in freedom and security within Israel\u2019s 1967 borders. We work to build worldwide Jewish opposition to the Israeli Occupation, with like-minded groups around the world and are a founding member of <\/em>European Jews for a Just Peace<\/em>, a federation of Jewish groups in ten European countries.<\/em><\/p>\n

Go to Original \u2013 jfjfp.com<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

22 May 2025\u00a0– Citing the ‘unbearable’ Gaza crisis, European leaders are warning of sanctions against Israel. Netanyahu’s limited aid move has failed to ease concerns, with one diplomat calling it a ‘disaster.’ An expert said the steps further isolate Israel as a pariah state misaligned with EU values.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":285660,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[3287,1559,1854,101,100,1199,87,865,1029,1644,88,2416,771,427,2897,880,99,70,965,1025],"class_list":["post-296218","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-europe","tag-anti-zionism","tag-collective-punishment","tag-crimes-against-humanity","tag-cultural-violence","tag-direct-violence","tag-ethnic-cleansing","tag-gaza","tag-genocide","tag-hamas","tag-international-court-of-justice-icj","tag-israel","tag-israeli-occupation","tag-nakba","tag-palestine","tag-sociocide","tag-state-terrorism","tag-structural-violence","tag-usa","tag-war-crimes","tag-west-bank"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/296218","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=296218"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/296218\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":296221,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/296218\/revisions\/296221"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/285660"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=296218"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=296218"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.transcend.org\/tms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=296218"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}