Brussels, March 20 – The European Jewish Congress has called on EU leaders and UN representatives to cease from incendiary statements with little basis in fact regarding the humanitarian situation in Gaza and which unjustly single out Israel.
“The constant flow of Israel-bashing by senior leaders in the EU and the UN with little to no criticism of Hamas terror is clearly the main contributory factor to huge growth in antisemitism recorded by all European Jewish communities since October 7 last year,” EJC President Dr Ariel Muzicant said. “EU and UN leaders should take care with language which easily transfers to physical attacks on European Jews.”
Muzicant noted in particular statements this week by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell blaming Israel for using starvation as a strategy of war in its conflict with the Hamas terror organisation in Gaza.
“Mr Borrell’s comments this week that Israel uses starvation as a war strategy are false and unfounded. They pour added petrol on to a fire already lit by Hamas terrorists and spread by their supporters in Europe, where the targets are Jewish communities,” Muzicant said.
The EJC is deeply concerned by such remarks which follow a constant barrage from European leaders against Israel, including from who holds the presidency of the European Council and serves as Prime Minister of Belgium, Alexander de Croo.
“And it’s not only the EU,” Muzicant said. “When senior United Nations officials such as Volker Türk and caretaker prime minister of Ireland, Leo Varadkar blithely throw around defamatory and clearly false language like genocide while calling for immediate unconditional ceasefire while Israeli hostages continue to languish in Hamas captivity, we have to ask which side of the political fence have democratic politicians and so-called respectable international organisations chosen to stand alongside.”
“We should not have to remind democratic states in Europe, nor senior officials of the European Union or the UN, that Israel is the victim, not the perpetrator of the current conflict instigated by Hamas, a group which the European Union itself categorises as a terror organisation. There is only one way to stop the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and that is to immediately release all Israeli hostages from Gaza,” Muzicant said.
“Israel has placed no limits on the aid allowed into Gaza despite it being involved in a military conflict with the very organisation that controls almost all distribution channels in the Strip and is itself deliberately preventing much of that aid reaching those who most need it,” Muzicant expressed.
“As it celebrates Palestinian casualties for its own war effort while cowardly hiding its own fighters and leaders in the tunnels or hospitals of Gaza and the hotels of Qatar, the only organisation using starvation as a war strategy is Hamas. Your remarks would be more helpful when directed at them and their international supporters.”
“As a combatant exercising self-defence to an unprovoked and brutal attack on its civilian population on October 7 last year, Israel continues to fulfil its obligations under the Geneva Convention and has allowed daily humanitarian aid into Gaza. I do not need to remind EU leaders that Gaza also shares a border with Egypt, which also needs to live up to its responsibilities,” Muzicant noted.
“The time has come for the international community, including the European Union and the United Nations, to live up to its own responsibilities and moral code, in simple terms, between a democratic ally exercising self-defence after an unprovoked attack, or a violent antisemitic terror organisation pledged to destroy the Jewish state” Muzicant concluded.
The EJC calls on all European leaders and governments to work now, daily, for the only solution to end the humanitarian crisis in Gaza, namely, to get the hostages home and to rid the Gaza population of their greatest threat, the Hamas terror group which wallows in their suffering and death.
