Josep Borrell, the head of European Union diplomacy, will ask the Twenty-Seven to sanction Israeli ministers. This request, which is not mandatory, targets ministers who have launched “unacceptable messages of hate against the Palestinians”.
EU Foreign Minister Josep Borrell has “launched the process to ask member states, if they wish,” to impose sanctions against Israeli ministers, who he said were guilty of spreading “hatred” against Palestinians. The EU sanctions include a ban on the targeted individuals traveling to EU territory and a seizure of any assets they may have in the EU.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has “launched the process to ask member states, if they wish,” to impose sanctions against Israeli ministers, who he said were guilty of spreading “hatred” against Palestinians. The EU sanctions include a ban on the targeted individuals from traveling to EU territory and a seizure of their assets in the EU.
“I believe that the European Union must not have taboos and use its tools to uphold human rights,” he told reporters shortly before the start of an informal meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers on Thursday, August 29, 2024.
Josep Borrell’s proposal targets Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who are far-right, according to diplomats.
Little chance of success
This proposal nevertheless has little chance of success given the strong divisions between the 27 since the attack by the Palestinian Hamas against Israel on October 7.
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Several countries, including Hungary, Austria and the Czech Republic, defend Israel’s right to defend itself and block the adoption of strong measures against the Israeli authorities.
This article is originally published on ouest-france.fr
