The EU foreign policy chief on Monday said that the bloc is "alarmed" by Israeli settler violence against Palestinians in the West Bank.
"We are … alarmed by the violence in the West Bank by the extremist Jewish settlers. We are also alarmed by the fact that the Israeli government has approved the construction of another 1,700 housing units in East Jerusalem to expand the (illegal Jewish) settlements," Josep Borell said at a news conference following the meeting of the EU's Foreign Affairs Council.
Borrell also drew attention to the increasing civilian casualties in Gaza as a result of the relentless Israeli attacks and said: "The destruction in Gaza is even more severe than the German cities suffered during World War II."
He said that the Israeli attacks on Gaza have caused an immense number of civilian casualties and that the displacement of some 1.5 million people is tantamount to a growing humanitarian catastrophe as repeatedly called by UN agencies.
Furthermore, he reiterated that only a political solution based on the two-state principle can ensure peace for Israel.
There is no military solution to this long-lasting dispute, Borrell added.
He also repeated the bloc's opposition to any possible plans for expelling the population from the Gaza Strip or its reoccupation by Israel.
He said support for the Palestine Authority should increasingly continue under the condition that ensure that the funds would not go to institutions "promoting antisemitism."
Israel resumed its military offensive on the Gaza Strip on Dec. 1 after the end of a weeklong humanitarian pause with the Palestinian group Hamas.
Nearly 18,205 Palestinians have been killed and more than 49,645 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7, following a cross-border attack by Hamas, according to Gaza's health authorities.
The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures.
