Israel’s Smotrich slams EU’s Borrell over sanctions remarks

Occupied Palestine (Quds News Network)- Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has accused EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell of backing Hamas as well as the Iranian “axis of evil”, claiming they “threaten the western society in its entirety”.

“There will be a day in which Europe will be ashamed of Borrell and the double standard that he and many of his friends have applied to Israel while siding with actual terrorists,” Smotrich posted on X.

Borrell had called for more sanctions on “extremist” Israeli ministers after recent comments by far-right Israeli ministers opposed to a Gaza ceasefire deal and humanitarian aid deliveries to the enclave.

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir has called for cutting off all fuel and aid to Gaza and Smotrich has said starving children in Gaza would be “justified and moral”.

For about 10 months, the Israeli occupation has imposed a tight siege on the Gaza Strip, extremely limiting the flow of life-saving essential food and medical items.

In June, independent UN investigators said Israel was using starvation on the Palestinian population as a weapon of war. The hunger crisis has led to the death of dozens of people due to malnutrition, mostly children.

Both Smotrich and Ben-Gvir have issued several threats whenever a deal is close. The two far-right ministers have threatened to quit and collapse the governing coalition if Netanyahu agrees to a Gaza ceasefire proposal.