Borrell asks EU on imposing possible sanctions on Israeli ministers
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The EU foreign policy chief did not specify which Israeli minister he is referring to for the imposition of sanctions.
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European Union Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell speaks during a press conference at the UN headquarters on September 21, 2022. (AP)
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell announced on Thursday that he is in the process of asking members of the bloc if they would consider possible sanctions on "some Israeli ministers."
"I initiated the procedure to ask the member states if they consider [it] appropriate to include in our list of sanctions some Israeli ministers [who] have been launching unacceptable hate messages against the Palestinians, and proposing things that clearly go against international law," the diplomat told reporters before a meeting with the European Union's foreign affairs ministers in Brussels.
Borrell did not name any Israeli ministers on whom he intends to impose sanctions.
EU chief weighs sanctions against Smotrich, Ben-Gvir in next meeting
The Guardian reported earlier on Monday that the European Union might sanction two Israeli far-right ministers in an attempt to restore its credibility in the Middle East.
EU Foreign Policy Chief Josep Borrell will pan out potential sanctions to be imposed on Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and Police Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir for the genocidal statements and behavior they have been exhibiting throughout the 10-month Israeli onslaught in Gaza and aggression in the West Bank.
Two weeks ago, Ben-Gvir was internationally condemned after he raided the courtyards of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, alongside at least 2,200 settlers, under the protection of occupation police forces, on the anniversary of the "destruction of the temple."
He has also made his genocidal intents very clear by repeatedly calling for the blockage of aid and fuel from the Gaza Strip amid the worsening Israeli-made humanitarian crisis.
Smotrich also blatantly said it would be "justified and moral" to starve the entirety of Gaza's population. Moreover, during a debate in cabinet regarding the release of the bodies of Palestinian martyrs who died in Israeli prisons, he said, "We should place the bodies on a cart and drag them through the city center as was done in biblical times, so that people can see and be deterred."
Responding to their comments, Borrell took to X to condemn both ministers, saying, "While the World pushes for a ceasefire in #Gaza, Min. Ben Gvir calls for cutting fuel & aid to civilians. Like Min. Smotrich sinister statements, this is an incitement to war crimes. Sanctions must be on our EU agenda."
