Geneva – The European Union (EU) continues to evade its international obligations regarding the grave crimes committed by Israel in the Gaza Strip, proposing only selective and fragmented measures that fail to utilise its real leverage tools against Israel and do nothing to halt the ongoing genocide for over 23 months.
The measures proposed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are symbolic and superficial, lacking seriousness and firmness, and amounting to a maneuver around the EU’s legal obligations under international law.
Von der Leyen, during her State of the Union address before the European Parliament in Strasbourg, proposed:
• A partial suspension of the trade chapter in the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
• Halting direct financial payments to the Israeli government and its official institutions.
• Imposing sanctions on far-right Israeli ministers and extremist settlers.
• Establishing a donor group for Palestine with a dedicated mechanism for the reconstruction of Gaza.
These proposals are nothing more than political window dressing, while the EU continues to ignore substantive measures required under international law, such as:
• A full suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
• Halting all forms of military cooperation, including arms exports and imports.
• Imposing binding sanctions on Israeli institutions and officials implicated in atrocities in Gaza.
The EU bears direct legal obligations to provide reparations to victims, given its political, economic, and military support for Israel, as well as its role in shielding Israeli violations from accountability. Establishing a donor group does not absolve the EU of these responsibilities, as both the Union and individual member states remain legally liable for their actions and omissions.
Less than two months ago, the EU merely “monitored Israel’s compliance” with a recent agreement aimed at improving humanitarian aid access to Gaza, a deal that Israel has failed to implement. Instead, the situation has deteriorated to the point where famine has been officially declared, yet the EU has taken no meaningful follow-up action.
By limiting its measures to symbolic steps, the EU is effectively granting Israel impunity, thereby enabling its continued crimes. Euro-Mediterranean Monitor thus calls on the EU to adopt decisive actions proportionate to the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza, including:
• Imposing comprehensive sanctions on Israeli officials and institutions.
• Suspending all cooperation agreements, foremost among them the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
• Enforcing a complete arms embargo and banning exports of dual-use technologies.
• Prohibiting settlement products from entering EU markets.
• Suspending Schengen visa privileges for implicated Israeli officials.
• Freezing all technical and logistical support that directly or indirectly facilitates violations.
Euro-Med Monitor also urges the EU to activate all available legal and political mechanisms within its framework to hold Israel accountable, including:
• Exercising universal jurisdiction to prosecute individuals involved in international crimes.
• Supporting the International Criminal Court (ICC) in issuing and enforcing arrest warrants against Israeli officials.
• Ending the illegal occupation, dismantling the settler-colonial and apartheid regime, lifting the unlawful blockade on Gaza, and upholding the Palestinian right to self-determination, return, and reparations.
The article appeared in countercurrents