Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
A European statement issued in Brussels today by the office of Josep Borrell, the European Union's foreign and security policy coordinator, said that three months after October 7, when the tragedy began with terrorist attacks launched by Hamas, then the bombing of Gaza and the unbearable number of civilian casualties, I returned. To the Middle East, first to Beirut and then to Riyadh after that, and I spoke. With the relevant actors in the region. Through the statement, I evaluated two things, Borrell added. First, the tragic humanitarian situation that people in Gaza are experiencing. I held a video conference and got a lot of clarifications from the Director-General of UNRWA, Philippe Lazzarini, and from the staff in Gaza. The situation is certainly dire, as hundreds of thousands of people have lost their shelters, no longer have food, and are living in a very miserable situation.
Secondly, the high risk of escalation in the region, on the border between Lebanon and Israel and also in the Red Sea. We must avoid these. We must avoid an extension of the war. The war must stop, not expand. The only solution to avoid the expansion of the war is to search for a political solution to the conflict between Israel and Palestine. This will require a strong commitment from the international community, and let us start with the European and Arab people.
This is what we agreed upon with Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia - to continue the work that we began a few days before the tragedy began, at the end of September in New York. At the United Nations General Assembly, we launched the Peace Day Initiative [effort].
No one was thinking about drama in the Palestinian territories, but in the West Bank it was already drama. And in Gaza as well. We began to think about the matter and search for a solution, because peace between the Arab countries and Israel is a good thing, but it is not enough.
This must happen mostly between Israel and Palestine, because only through agreement, the political agreement - the two-state solution - can Israel become secure, because its security cannot be based solely on military capability, but this has been proven.
Now we must stop the killing of civilians in Gaza. We have to stop this large number of victims. Hamas must be eliminated. But Hamas is an idea, it represents an idea, and you cannot kill an idea. The only way to kill an idea - a bad idea - is to propose a better idea, and give a horizon to the Palestinian people, to their dignity, freedom, and security, which must go hand in hand with security. For Israel.
. It's always been difficult. For thirty years, the international community has been promising a two-state solution but doing little, or sometimes nothing, to make it possible. Today it is more difficult than it was 30 years ago when the Oslo Accords were concluded. But even if it is difficult, we have to try.
After my return to Brussels, I affirm the commitment between the European world and the Arab world to work for this and avoid the expansion of war in the region. It is not in anyone's interest to have another war on the border with Lebanon, and it is not in anyone's interest to endanger traffic and ship transportation in the Red Sea. Well, maybe it's in someone's best interest, but it's certainly not in humanity's best interest.