live blog
The EU foreign policy chief Borrell wants to campaign diplomatically for a separate state for the Palestinians. Relatives of the held hostages protest in front of Netanyahu’s private residence. The developments in the live blog.
More and more states are pushing for a perspective to end the war in the Gaza Strip, while at the same time Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejects the conditions for a ceasefire and a two-state solution. The Israeli population is particularly closely watching US moves, such as a trip by Middle East advisor Jake Sullivan to Cairo and Doha, says ARD correspondent Hanna Resch from Tel Aviv. Washington is “Israel’s best friend and closest ally,” on whose support the country depends militarily and financially.
Despite the current “differences of opinion”, Foreign Minister Israel Katz’s participation in the EU foreign ministers’ meeting is a signal, says Resch: “There is definitely a willingness to talk.” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell had previously made it clear that there must be talks about a possible Palestinian state, otherwise the EU would have to think about a reaction and possible actions towards Israel.
Federal Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is demanding an immediate end to gun violence from the radical Islamic Hamas. The entire region cannot live in peace “if Hamas’ terror is not stopped,” she said before meetings of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. It is necessary that Hamas’s financing and support network “finally be dismantled.” The European Union has already introduced sanctions for this purpose.
Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan has given conditions for the kingdom’s normalization of relations with the State of Israel: They will not take part in the reconstruction of the Gaza Strip without there being “a credible roadmap” to their own Palestinian state. He said this in an interview with CNN.
Before Hamas’ attack on Israel, which triggered a war in the Gaza Strip, Saudi Arabia and Israel had discussed establishing mutual relations and cooperation. However, after October 7th these came to a standstill.
The EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has announced that he will support Palestinian statehood as a solution to the Middle East conflict: “From now on I will no longer talk about the peace process, but I want a two-state solution,” Borrell said in front of a meeting Meeting of EU foreign ministers in Brussels. Peace cannot be achieved “only through military means”. The humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip “couldn’t be worse,” adds the European Union’s chief diplomat.
Relatives of the hostages held in the Gaza Strip want to use another protest to pressure Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu into an agreement with the Islamist Hamas. As the newspaper “The Times of Israel” reported on Monday night, relatives of the more than 130 hostages pitched tents on a sidewalk in front of Netanyahu’s private home in Jerusalem. A spokesman was quoted as saying that they would remain in the tents until Netanyahu “agreed to an agreement to return the hostages.”
Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz and Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riad al-Maliki have confirmed their participation in separate meetings with their European Union (EU) counterparts in Brussels.
Ahead of the talks, the EU diplomatic service sent a discussion paper to the 27 member states proposing a roadmap for peace in the broader Israeli-Palestinian conflict. The focus is on the demand for a “preparatory peace conference” to be organized by the EU, Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and the Arab League.
Despite Israel’s refusal to respond to the militant Islamist Hamas’s demand for an end to the fighting in Gaza as a condition for the release of hostages, negotiations are continuing in the background, according to a media report.
As the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday, citing diplomatic circles, the United States, Egypt and Qatar are urging both sides to enter into a gradual diplomatic process. This provides for the release of hostages at the beginning and ultimately the withdrawal of the Israeli army from the Gaza Strip and an end to the war. The negotiations should continue in Cairo in the coming days, it was said.
Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu rejects Hamas’ conditions for the release of Israeli hostages. Around 1,000 Palestinians have now received medical treatment on a French warship. Sunday’s live blog for reading.