European Foreign Ministers Express Deep Concern over Situation in Gaza

Foreign ministers of several European Union (EU) member states expressed their deep concern over the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, calling for the urgent need to reach an agreement on a permanent ceasefire. Ireland's Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheal Martin considered the ongoing war in Gaza as a war primarily against all Palestinians, describing the number of civilian casualties as unacceptable to the human conscience. Sweden's Minister for Foreign Affairs Tobias Billstrom called for ending the massive suffering of the civilian population in Gaza and stressed the urgent need to end the war and reach an urgent ceasefire agreement. Belgium's Minister of Foreign Affairs Hadja Lahbib described the fighting in Gaza as a tragedy and a humanitarian catastrophe and warned of escalating violence in the West Bank. Germany's Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock called for a ceasefire in Gaza and stressed the importance of not allowing the current situation in the West Bank to explode. Senior UN Coordi nator for Humanitarian Action and Reconstruction in Gaza Sigrid Kaag said that the level of destruction and human suffering in the Strip has not been seen in the twenty-first century and has reached an indescribable level. Kaag called for the necessity of stopping the war in hopes of preserving what remains of life in Gaza. The toll of the more than ten-month-long Israeli aggression has reached 40,602 martyrs and 93,855 wounded. Thousands of other victims are still under the rubble. Source: Qatar News Agency