Vice President of the European Commission and High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy in the European Union, Josep Borrell, considered that the Israeli war on Gaza today is the result of “the failure of the international community to achieve a political solution to the Palestinian issue.”

This came during a press conference with Palestinian Prime Minister Muhammad Shtayyeh in Ramallah, in which Borrell called on Israel to respect international humanitarian law.

Borrell believed that "the war against Hamas today is the result of the failure of the international community to reach a political solution."

He continued: “The war on Gaza confirmed to us that the Palestinian issue cannot be left unresolved,” stressing the European Union’s support for the two-state solution option, and its readiness for “political engagement leading to an end to the occupation,” without clarification.

He also explained that the cycle of violence in the region could be stopped through “only a political solution,” adding: “The day after the ceasefire means a horizon and a political plan that includes the collection of Palestinian lands.”

Borrell called on Israel to "respect international humanitarian law," noting that there were "thousands of civilian casualties in the Gaza Strip."

Accordingly, the European official called for "an immediate humanitarian truce, more opportunities for aid to reach civilians, and for the international community to be able to provide aid."

In this context, Borrell acknowledged the existence of “increasing settler violence in the West Bank,” noting that he called on Israel to “avoid” these practices.

As such, he stressed his rejection of forced displacement outside the Gaza Strip, Israel’s occupation of Gaza, or finding a solution in the Gaza Strip isolated from the West Bank.

He indicated his support for the return of the Palestinian Authority to the Gaza Strip, saying: “You there have not left Gaza providing services, and you have the ability to continue the mission and need support from the international community.”

For his part, Shtayyeh stressed the necessity of establishing an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, and the urgent need to deliver aid and medicine to the Strip.

He said during the conference: “What is happening in Gaza is mass killing, in the spirit of revenge, and we want it to stop.” He added that the West Bank "is not far from what is happening in the Gaza Strip, where 421 Palestinians have been killed since the beginning of the year."

He continued: "The situation is tragic in Gaza, there is no food or drink, and the bloodshed continues. What we demand is that international humanitarian law must be respected."

Borrell considered that "Hamas' "terrorist" acts on October 7 harmed the Palestinian people and the goals of Palestine, and nothing justifies what Hamas did bloodily, and we urge them to release the hostages," as he put it.

On Sunday, Borrell said in a post on “X”: “We condemn Hamas’ use of hospitals and civilians as human shields,” calling on civilians to “leave the combat zones.”

Hamas: Borrell exceeded diplomacy by distorting the Palestinians’ right to “resistance”

On the other hand, the Hamas movement considered, on Friday, that European Union foreign policy official Josep Borrell exceeded the limits of decency and diplomacy when he tried to distort the right of the Palestinian people to “resist the Israeli occupation.”

In response to Borrell’s statements during the press conference with Shtayyeh, in which he described Hamas’ actions as “terrorist,” Hamas said in a press statement: “Borrell crossed the limits of decency and diplomacy when he tried to distort the right of the Palestinian people to resist the (Israeli) occupation, which is guaranteed under international law.” “Which is no longer of value to Washington and the European Union by giving the occupation a green light to commit more massacres against our people.”

The movement condemned Borrell's statements, and held him responsible "for justifying the occupation by committing massacres, killing children and women, and violating the sanctity of hospitals and schools (...) under the name of the entity's right to defend itself."

It affirmed, "The right of our people to resist the occupation because they have sovereignty and the supreme say over their land, and no one has the right to dictate over them. Our people will remain committed to their legitimate rights until the occupation is defeated and eliminated, and its Palestinian state is established with Jerusalem as its capital."

(Anatolia, Al-Arabi Al-Jadeed)