A group of more than 460 former European political figures has written an editorial calling on the EU to take tougher action against Israel over its military operations in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, Anadolu reports.
The signatories include former Irish leaders Leo Varadkar and Eamon Gilmore, as well as former European Parliament President Pat Cox. Other former prime ministers include Italy’s Massimo d’Alema and Romano Prodi, Slovenia’s Robert Golob and Sweden’s Stefan Lofven, according to a report by Irish broadcaster RTE on Wednesday.
The op-ed comes ahead of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg next week and an EU summit in Brussels, where proposals to curtail trade with Israel and suspend parts of the EU-Israel Association Agreement will be discussed.
The 27-member bloc has so far not imposed any measures against the state of Israel, which has continued its genocide in Israel since October 2023 despite a ceasefire, and also attacked Lebanon, Iran and Syria.
READ: UN warns of ‘immense’ humanitarian needs as Israel allows only one crossing into Gaza
