EU's top diplomat calls for a 'humanitarian pause' in Gaza

Ministers say claims that the bloc is divided over the Middle East conflict are exaggerated

Volunteers gather around lorries carrying aid that entered Gaza from Egypt through the Rafah border crossing. AFP

Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on Monday urged faster aid deliveries to Gaza and said the bloc was debating a call for a “humanitarian pause” in Israel's conflict with Hamas.

“Personally, I think a humanitarian pause is needed to allow humanitarian support to come into [the enclave] and be distributed,” said Mr Borrell as he arrived at a meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers in Luxembourg.

“In normal times, without war, 100 trucks enter Gaza every day, so it’s clear that 20 is not enough.”

A first shipment of 20 lorries carrying humanitarian aid was allowed through the Rafah border crossing on Saturday.

It was followed by a second convoy of 17 on Sunday and a third comprising 40 on Monday.

Mr Borrell said ministers would discuss calls from UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres for a “humanitarian ceasefire”.

“It’s important to have fuel to make the power stations work and the desalination stations work,” he said. “Otherwise, there is no water and no electricity and without water and electricity, hospitals can barely work.”

Mr Borrell said that a pause was also needed for Israeli hostages held by Hamas to be returned safely.

“It’s part of any step towards de-escalation,” he said.

Israel said on Monday that 222 people had been confirmed as taken hostage on October 7 by Hamas.

In its unprecedented cross-border raid, the militant group, labelled as terrorist by the EU, killed more than 1,400 Israelis, mostly civilians.

About 5,000 Palestinians, also mainly civilians, have been killed in the Gaza Strip by Israel’s retaliatory bombardments.

Asked by reporters why the aid was not reaching Gaza, Mr Borrell said: “At the moment, Egypt is ready to let all the trucks [that] are queuing to enter. I don’t want to put the blame on anyone but the fact is that they are not entering.”

Foreign affairs ministers from the bloc acknowledged the complexity of the situation but said that a call for a ceasefire was unlikely. The EU is divided by the Israel-Palestine conflict.

Germany's Annalena Baerbock said the “fight against terrorism, which has brought so much suffering to the people of Gaza, is essential”.

“At the same time, everything must be done to alleviate the unbelievable suffering of the two million people in Gaza,” she said.

“This is squaring the circle. But we must face this squaring of the circle together.”

Others said they backed Mr Guterres’ call for a humanitarian pause, which would be “welcome,” said Luxembourg’s Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn.

“The EU can in no way spell out conditions to Israel,” said Mr Asselborn.

“But we can explain our point of view and echo what [US] President Biden said: do not react with rage.”

Ireland’s Foreign Minister Micheal Martin said that the conflict could spill over to neighbouring countries such as Lebanon.

“Lebanon is in no position to withstand a conflict at this stage due to the perilous situation it is in,” said Mr Martin.

Others were keen to reaffirm their support for Israel.

Questioned about whether the EU would call for a ceasefire, Czech Foreign Affairs Minister Jan Lipavsky said: “I hope that everyone understands that Israel has a right to self-defence.”

Palestinians look for survivors of Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip at Nusseirat refugee camp. AP

A survivor is found in the rubble in Nusseirat. AP

A man is given oxygen and pulled from the rubble in Nusseirat. AP

This desperate search for survivors is being replicated across the Gaza Strip. AP

Yocheved Lifshitz speaks to the media outside a Tel Aviv hospital after being released by Hamas. EPA

Israeli women who were held hostage by Palestinian Hamas militants, Yocheved Lifshitz and Nurit Cooper (also known as Nurit Yitzhak), are released by the militants. Reuters

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, welcomes French President Emmanuel Macron before their talks in Jerusalem. AP

Palestinians search for casualties at the site of an Israeli air strike on a house in Khan Younis, in the southern Gaza Strip. Reuters

Palestinians inspect the damage of a destroyed house that was hit by an Israeli air strike in Khan Younis. AP

Ms Cooper and Ms Lifshitz arrive at the Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Centre after being released by Hamas on Monday. AFP

A woman cries next to the rubble of a building after Israeli strikes on Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip. AFP

Wateen, a 14-month-old Palestinian baby, who was wounded in an Israeli strike that killed her mother and injured her twin brother Ahmed, recovers at Nasser hospital, in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip. Reuters

A Palestinian girl clutches salvaged books as people look for survivors in the rubble of a destroyed building hit in an Israeli strike in Khan Younis. AFP

People mourn during the funeral of members of the Abu Morad family who died following Israeli strikes, in Khan Younis. AFP

A wounded Palestinian man arrives at Nasser Medical Complex, following Israeli air strikes on the town of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip. AP

Red Crescent Society employees sort humanitarian aid bound for Palestinians in Gaza, at a warehouse in Arish, Egypt. EPA

Ayman Abou Chamalah stands next to his daughter Mecca as she receives care inside an incubator at a hospital in Rafah. AFP

Israeli soldiers carry the coffin of Erik Kraunik, chief of security in the kibbutz of Be'eri, during his funeral at a cemetery in Yehud, Israel. AP

A man sits among the rubble of a building destroyed in Israel's bombardment of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip. AFP

A Red Crescent worker sorts aid for Palestinians in Khan Younis, in the southern part of the blockaded enclave. Reuters

Israeli soldiers take part in a drill near the border with Gaza ahead of an expected ground invasion. EPA

Men fill fuel containers with drinking water in Rafah. AFP

Smoke billows over Gaza after an air strike, as seen from southern Israel. AP

A person holds a child as Palestinians gather in Khan Younis at the site of a house destroyed during an Israeli bombardment. Reuters

Israeli soldiers sit on top of a tank near the border with Gaza. Getty Images

Buildings destroyed by Israeli air strikes in Khan Younis. Reuters

Palestinians are evacuated from a building in Rafah that was hit during Israel's bombardment. AP

Shahar Idan, 9, mourns during the funeral of his brother Maayan, 18, who was killed by Hamas gunmen in the kibbutz of Nahal Oz. His father Tzahi is being held hostage in Gaza. Reuters

Palestinian doctors treat a premature baby at Al Aqsa Hospital in Deir Al Balah, Gaza. AP

Rescue crews search for bodies after Hamas militants attacked the kibbutz of Be'eri in Israel. Getty Images

Lorries carrying humanitarian aid head to Deir Al Balah after crossing from Egypt through Rafah. Bloomberg

Palestinians evacuate survivors in Deir Al Balah after an Israeli bombardment. AP

Smoke rises after Israeli air strikes on Gaza. EPA

Israeli soldiers at a position along the border with Lebanon. EPA

A woman leans against the window of an ambulance outside Kuwait Hospital after an Israeli strike in Rafah. AFP

A Palestinian cries as the body of his daughter is recovered from beneath the rubble of a building destroyed during an Israeli air strike on Rafah. AFP

A convoy carrying humanitarian aid arrives in Rafah after crossing into the Gaza Strip from Egypt. Bloomberg

The pictures of more than 1,000 people abducted or killed during the attack by Hamas militants are displayed on empty seats at Tel Aviv University. Getty

Palestinians are evacuated from buildings in Rafah after the bombardment of the Gaza Strip. AP

Israeli soldiers gather at an undisclosed location near the border with Gaza. EPA

Palestinians mourn outside a house in Gaza struck by Israel. Reuters

A bullet-riddled fridge in a house in the kibbutz of Kissufim in southern Israel, where 14 people were killed and four were abducted by Hamas militants on October 7. AP

Football fans inside Anfield stadium hold up Palestine flags during the Liverpool-Everton derby on Saturday. Reuters

Palestinians wounded in the bombardment of Gaza are taken to Al Asa Hospital in Deir Al Balah. AP

Rescuers search for victims and survivors in buildings destroyed by air strikes in Khan Younis, Gaza. Getty

Residents of Tel Aviv show support for the families of hostages being held in Gaza by Hamas. Reuters

The EU, particularly EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, has been criticised both internally and externally for its pro-Israel stance and double standards in comparison with the war in Ukraine.

Mr Borrell acknowledged the issue, saying “the issue of double standards that already was there before the war in Gaza, now it comes again”.

“We have to be very […] careful in order to show the same concern for every civilian killed,” he said.

Echoing previous statements made by Ms von der Leyen, Latvia’s Foreign Minister Krisjanis Karins said there was “no contradiction” between a complete condemnation of the killing of 1,400 Israelis by Hamas, the EU’s support for Israeli self-defence and its calls to protect civilian lives.

“The EU is not as far apart as maybe the media and some of our non-friends would want,” said Mr Karins.

The bloc’s foreign affairs ministers are unlikely to call for a ceasefire, he said.

“It’s a question of what we are emphasising: Israel against Hamas, or are we emphasising what is actually happening to civilians. These are not contradictions. These are just different ends to the same, rather difficult, puzzle,” he said.