EU ministers discuss next steps in response to Israel-Hamas war

(Patria) - European Union foreign ministers are discussing possible next steps in response to the Middle East crisis, including cracking down on Hamas finances and travel bans for Israeli settlers responsible for violence in the West Bank, Reuters reported.

At a meeting in Brussels, ministers from the bloc’s 27 countries will also hear from their Ukrainian counterpart Dmytro Kuleba as they discuss future security assistance for Kyiv. While EU officials insist that aid to Ukraine remains the top priority, the eruption of war between Israel and the Palestinian militant group Hamas has forced the bloc to focus on the Middle East.

The war has exposed long-standing and deep divisions within the wider Israeli-Palestinian conflict among EU countries. But ministers will try to find common ground as they discuss a discussion paper from the EU’s diplomatic service that outlines a wide range of possible next steps.

Hamas is already listed by the EU as a terrorist organisation, meaning any funds or assets it holds in the EU should be frozen. The EU said on Friday it had added Mohammed Deif, the overall commander of Hamas’s military wing, and his deputy Marwan Issa to its list of sanctioned terrorists.

The discussion paper, seen by Reuters, suggests the EU could go further by targeting Hamas finances and disinformation. EU countries, including France and Germany, have said they are already working together to advance such proposals.

Senior EU officials, such as the High Representative for Foreign Policy Josep Borrell, have also expressed concern about the escalating violence by Israeli settlers against Palestinians in the occupied West Bank. The aforementioned discussion paper suggests the EU’s response could include travel bans to the EU for those responsible and other human rights violations sanctions.

France said last month that the EU should consider such measures, and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo said last week that “extremist settlers in the West Bank” would be banned from entering the country.

Diplomats said it would be difficult to achieve the unanimity needed for EU-wide bans, as countries like Austria, the Czech Republic and Hungary are staunch allies of Israel.

However, some suggested last week that a decision by the United States, Israel’s biggest supporter, to start imposing visa ban restrictions on people involved in West Bank violence could spur EU countries to take similar steps.