Aid to Gaza must never be politicized, says EU commissioner

BRUSSELS

Aid to Gaza must never be politicized, EU Commissioner for Equality and for Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib said Thursday.

Speaking to reporters on her way into the EU foreign affairs ministers' meeting in Brussels, Lahbib stressed that although Israeli hostages have returned home, the humanitarian situation in Gaza "remains devastating," with winter approaching while Palestinians are "cold, wet, and hungry" after recent floods.

She underlined that the EU has prepositioned essential supplies in Egypt's Al-Arish and in Amman, but deliveries into Gaza continue only in "tiny steps."

"We need full access," she said, calling for immediate and unhindered humanitarian operations.

"This week the UN Security Council adopted the resolution on the Gaza Peace Plan. We support this plan, but the devil is in the details. It will depend how it is put into action," Lahbib said.

"Aid must be neutral, and impartial, in line with international humanitarian law. Never politicized. Never militarized," she added.

Turning to the West Bank, Lahbib warned of rising settler attacks. "Settler violence is surging. This violence must stop. International law must be respected," she said.

Since October 2023, the Israeli army has killed nearly 70,000 people in Gaza, mostly women and children, injured over 170,000, and reduced the enclave to rubble.