Belgium calls on EU to stop exporting weapons to Israeli occupation

BRUSSELS, May 09 (YPA) – Belgium’s Minister for Development Cooperation Caroline Gennez called on European Union member states to stop exporting weapons to the Israeli occupation, warning of the worsening humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.

During her participation in the European Union development ministers’ meeting on Wednesday, Gennez said she that the time has come to stop arms exports to the Middle East, Israel, and countries that are at war.

She added that the ground attack launched by the Israeli army on the Rafah area in the Gaza Strip “should be a red line, adding that there is a need to deliver humanitarian aid without obstacles on a permanent basis.”

“But I read this morning that the Rafah and Kerem Abu Salem crossing borders are closed,” Gennez explained. “The humanitarian catastrophe is growing, threatening millions of people with famine.”

The minister called on the European Union Commission to continue its commitments and funding to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

Since Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip started on October 7, the occupation army has deliberately targeted Gaza’s hospitals and the health system, putting many hospitals out of service and the lives of the sick and wounded at risk.

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