The European Union has called for sanctions and other punitive measures against Jerusalem following the Israeli strike on Hamas terrorist leadership in Qatar. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, on Wednesday, demanded “sanctions and a partial trade suspension against Israel,” the Associated Press reported.
Von der Leyen, a close ally of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, falsely accused Israel of creating “man-made famine” in Gaza and undermining “the two-state solution.” The measures against Israel were announced at Von der Leyen’s so-called ‘State of the Union’ speech in the EU parliament, accompanied by pomp and fanfare.
“The European Commission will propose sanctioning extremist Israeli ministers and the suspension of trade-related measures in a European Union agreement with Israel, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Wednesday,” Reuters reported.
On Tuesday, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) targeted Hamas leadership in an airstrike in Qatar’s capital, Doha. The fate of the Qatar-based Hamas top brass remains unclear. The Israeli military is still assessing the outcome of the operation.
The strike came after Hamas repeatedly rejected Israeli and U.S. proposals to free the remaining hostages and disarm.
Germany’s state-owned DW TV reported von der Leyen’s measures:
The European Union is set to suspend all financial support for Israel as a result of the country’s actions in the Gaza Strip, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Wednesday.”We will put our bilateral support to Israel on hold,” she told the European Parliament in Strasbourg. (…)Exemptions will be made for EU payments which support Israeli civil society initiatives and the Yad Vashem Holocaust museum.(…)(…) Von der Leyen, also proposing “a partial suspension” of the so-called Association Agreement which has underpinned political and economic relations between Israel and the EU since 2000. (…)In addition to the suspension of bilateral payments to Israel (see below), EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has also proposed “sanctions on extremist [Israeli] ministers and on violent settlers.”Members of the Israeli government, including Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir, are themselves settlers in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, and vocal advocates of continuing and expanding illegal Israeli settlements in the region.
The European bloc is Israel’s largest trading partner, with $28 billion worth of annual trade. The EU accounts for 32% of Israel’s global trade.
“The sanctions, which require unanimous support from 27 member states, are likely to get pushback from Germany, Hungary, and some other European nations. “The proposals would need broad or unanimous support among the EU’s member states, which is likely to be hard to achieve as the bloc is deeply divided on the Middle East,” Reuters added.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar rejected von der Leyen’s baseless accusations, saying her remarks ‘strengthen Hamas’ and Iran-led Islamist ‘radical axis.’
“The suffering inflicted on both Israelis and Palestinians alike is Hamas’s fault,” he wrote on X. “Anyone who seeks an end to the war knows very well how to end it: the release of the hostages, the disarmament of Hamas, a new future for Gaza.”
The Times of Israel reported:
Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar calls European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s announcement that the Commission will propose sanctioning Israeli ministers and a partial suspension of the EU’s association agreement with Israel “regrettable,” saying her remarks strengthen Hamas and ignore Israel’s efforts to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.“The President of the European Commission’s comments this morning are regrettable,” Sa’ar writes on X. “Once again, Europe conveys the wrong message that strengthens Hamas and the radical axis in the Middle East.”Von der Leyen had said, “Man-made famine can never be a weapon of war,” referring to allegations of widespread starvation in the Gaza Strip as a result of Israel refusing to ensure aid distribution as part of its war strategy.Sa’ar rejects her account, writing that some of her statements “are also tainted by echoing the false propaganda of Hamas and its partners.”
Israeli Air Force (IAF), on Wednesday, struck terrorist and regime sites belonging to the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen. The strike includes the Houthi propaganda ministry and weapons depots in Yemen’s capital, Sanaa. IAF fighter jets hit “weapons and ammunition caches alongside fuel storage facilities,” Israel’s Ynetnews reported.
“A short while ago, the IAF struck military targets belonging to the Houthi terrorist regime in the areas of Sanaa and Al Jawf in Yemen,” the Israeli armed forces disclosed. “Among the targets struck are military camps in which operatives of the terrorist regime were identified, the Houthis’ Military Public Relations Headquarters, and a fuel storage facility that was used by the terrorist regime for terrorist activity.”
“The strikes were conducted in response to attacks by the Houthi terrorist regime against the State of Israel, including launching UAVs and surface-to-surface missiles toward Israeli territory,” the IDF said.
Describing the significance of the targets, the IDF observed:
The terrorist regime’s Public Relations Department is responsible for distributing and disseminating propaganda messages in the media, including speeches of the Houthi leader Abd al-Malik and the spokesman Yahya Sari’s statements. During the war, the headquarters led the propaganda efforts and the terrorist regime’s psychological terror.The military camps that were struck served the Houthi regime to plan and execute terrorist attacks against the State of Israel. Additionally, the military camps included operation and intelligence rooms.
Following a strike on Hamas’ terrorist leadership in Qatar, the Israeli armed forces are pushing ahead with their operation to capture the terror stronghold of Gaza City.
“As part of Operation ‘Gideon’s Chariots II’, the Population Warning Department of the Southern Command and Unit 504 began yesterday (Tuesday) an effort to warn the civilian population in Gaza City,” the IDF informed in a press release on Wednesday.
“The IDF is employing a variety of operational tools including the distribution of voice messages, dropping of leaflets, sending text messages, and conducting phone calls, all with the goal of reaching as many civilians as possible,” the military added. “The IDF calls on civilians in the Gaza Strip to heed the official instructions for their safety and to avoid staying in areas designated as dangerous.”
The IDF is sending text and audio messages to mobile phones in the area. Israeli planes are dropping leaflets, providing information on safe zones to Gaza residents fleeing the area.
“For your safety, evacuate immediately via the Al-Rashid corridor to the humanitarian area in Al-Mawasi. Remaining in the area is very dangerous,” the IDF leaflet dropped on Tuesday said.
While the IDF is implementing painstaking measures to minimize civilian casualties, Hamas is threatening Gaza City residents and ambushing those fleeing the area.
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