Slovenia Imposes Arms Embargo on Israel Amid Gaza Genocide

Ljubljana (Quds News Network)- Slovenia imposed an embargo on exports, imports and transit of arms to Israel on Thursday, two weeks after it declared Israeli ministers persona non grata, amid the ongoing genocide in Gaza.

The measure was announced by Prime Minister Robert Golob after a government session.

“Slovenia is the first European country to ban the import, export, and transit of weapons to and from Israel,” the government said in a statement late on Thursday.

It said it was moving ahead “independently” because the bloc was “unable to adopt concrete measures due to internal disagreements and disunity.”

Amid the devastating war in Gaza, where “people are dying because humanitarian aid is systematically denied them,” it was the “duty of every responsible state to take action, even if it means taking a step ahead of others,” the statement said.

It added that the government had not issued any permits for the export of military weapons and equipment to Israel since October 2023 because of the assault in Gaza.

In June 2024, Slovenia recognised a Palestinian state and has since repeatedly called for a ceasefire in Gaza and increased aid deliveries to the war-torn enclave.

Early in July, Slovenia, also in an EU first, banned two far-right Israeli ministers from entering the country.

It declared both Itamar Ben-Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich “persona non grata,” accusing them of inciting “extreme violence and serious violations of the human rights of Palestinians” with “their genocidal statements.”

The announcemet came amid growing pressure on Israel to end its ongoing genocide in Gaza, which began in October 2023. More than 60,000 people have been killed so far, the majority children and women.

Recently, the UK, France, Canada, and Malta announced they would recognize a Palestinian state in September during the UN general assembly meeting in New York.

Portugal’s centre-right government will also consult the main political parties and President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa about potential recognition of a Palestinian state, Prime Minister Luís Montenegro said on Thursday.

France and 14 other countries co-signed a declaration that pointed towards a wave of future recognitions of an independent Palestinian state.

The New York Call, published by the French foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, on Wednesday, said signatories “have already recognised, have expressed or express the willingness or the positive consideration of our countries to recognise the State of Palestine”.

The signatories include Andorra, Australia, Canada, Finland, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Portugal and San Marino, each of which has not yet recognised an independent Palestinian state. They also include Iceland, Ireland, Malta, Norway, Slovenia and Spain, which have.

The statement, which was published before the conclusion of a three-day UN conference set on reviving a two-state solution to the Israeli occupation of Palestine, said the states would “reiterate our unwavering commitment to the vision of the two-state solution.” It stressed the “importance of unifying the Gaza Strip with the West Bank under the Palestinian Authority”.

Last year, amid Israel’s assault on Gaza, nine countries – Armenia, Slovenia, Ireland, Norway, Spain, the Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, Jamaica and Barbados – formally recognised the State of Palestine, reflecting growing international support.

About 144 of the 193 member states of the United Nations recognise Palestine as a state, including most of the global south as well as Russia, China and India.