Gaza: We must act now to avoid a humanitarian catastrophe and the spread of conflict in the region

The Renew Europe Group in the European Parliament calls for a permanent ceasefire and the restart of efforts towards a political solution for the Israel - Hamas war.

During today’s plenary debate on the resolution focusing on the humanitarian situation in Gaza, the need to reach a ceasefire and the risks of regional escalation, Renew Europe reiterated its call for all hostages to be immediately and unconditionally released, international humanitarian law respected and possible war crimes investigated, voicing its support for the work of the International Criminal Court as well as the International Court of Justice.

Our political group urges Israeli authorities to ensure continuous access of humanitarian aid to Gaza, especially uninterrupted delivery of essentials like fuel, food, water, medical supplies, and shelter, in line with international law and demands immediate restoration of vital infrastructures. The group sent a delegation to the border crossing with Gaza to assess the obstacles to humanitarian aid last month.

MEP Hilde Vautmans (Open Vld, Belgium), Renew Europe Group’s coordinator in the Foreign Affairs Committee, said:

“The suffering in Israel and the occupied Palestinian territories must stop. With the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza and now that the risk of regional escalation is higher than ever, we must strengthen our message. We must call for much more humanitarian aid to be urgently delivered to Gaza's population by opening corridors, all parties to respect international humanitarian law, and for a permanent ceasefire to end the hostilities. If we truly want to be a geopolitical Union, Europe must now unite behind one common message. Our international credibility is at stake.”