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Visits by EU Leaders to Israel Highlight Growing Divisions in Brussels Over War in Gaza
German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Israeli President Isaac Herzog visiting Kibbutz Be’eri. Photo: Reuters/Bernd von Jutrczenka
Visits to Israel by European Union leaders during the last week have illuminated the growing divide in the bloc over the extent of its support for the Jewish state’s war against Hamas in Gaza.
The leaders of Spain, Belgium, and Germany have all made the trip in recent days, with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier earning plaudits from his hosts for his remarks while in Israel — in marked contrast to Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander de Croo, who were accused by Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen of giving “support to terrorism.”
Soon after arriving in Tel Aviv, Steinmeier traveled to Kibbutz Be’eri in the south of Israel, where at least 130 residents were murdered by Hamas terrorists during their onslaught on Oct. 7. During his tour of the shattered kibbutz on Monday, the German president pledged that Berlin would provide funds for its reconstruction, announcing the sum of seven million Euros to rebuild its art gallery.
“Be’eri and the many other kibbutzim deserve to be not only part of Israel’s history, but above all to be part of Israel’s future,” Steinmeier declared.
Israeli President Isaac Herzog, who accompanied Steinmeier, described the German leader and his wife, Elke, as “dear friends.”
“We have a dream, Mr. President, to rebuild this place as part of rebuilding the entire Kibbutz Be’eri and the entire region,” Herzog told his guest. “And we will rebuild and we will go back and we will wake up as a nation as a lion, to go back and regain and rebuild these places, so that they will flourish, and send a message of hope and peace to the entire world.”
In response, Steinmeier observed that “it’s not easy to find the words to describe what we heard from those who have the knowledge and who were witnessing the deeds, the murders, the killings, the rapes by Hamas here on Oct. 7.” He added that he hoped to “create conditions [so] that young people, craftsmen from Germany and from Israel, are meeting here to cooperate very closely in this rebuilding process.”
The visits last week by Sanchez and de Croo were shrouded in tension, however, with several observers speaking of a “diplomatic crisis” between Israel and the two EU member states.
Last Friday, the two premiers held a press conference at the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt where they strongly condemned Israel’s military response.
De Croo complained that “too many civilians have been killed in this conflict,” adding: “We cannot accept a society is destroyed the way the society of Gaza is being destroyed.”
For his part, Sanchez decried what he called the “indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians, including thousands of children.”
Said Sanchez: “I reiterate Israel’s right to defend itself, but within parameters and limitations imposed by international humanitarian law. And it is not the case.”
The Spanish leader also intimated that Spain would unilaterally recognize an independent Palestinian state if the EU as a whole failed to do so.
Acknowledging that such a move would be “better” if agreed on by all 27 member states, Sanchez then emphasized that “if this is not the case, Spain will make its own decisions.”
In response, Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen summoned the Spanish and Belgian Ambassadors for a strong reprimand.
“We condemn the false claims of the prime ministers of Spain and Belgium who give support to terrorism,” Cohen said. “Israel is acting according to international law and fighting a murderous terrorist organization worse than ISIS that commits war crimes and crimes against humanity.”
EU leaders in Brussels have also been underlining their support for a resolution to the conflict that includes an independent Palestinian state.
“The Palestinian people and the Arab neighbors need the reassurance that there will be no forced displacement but a viable perspective, with an independent Palestinian state — Gaza and West Bank reunited — and governed by a reformed Palestinian Authority. And to this end, unacceptable violence by extremists in the West Bank has to stop,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said over the weekend, in a swipe at Israeli settlers in the West Bank. “A peaceful co-existence is only possible with the two-state solution.”
While the EU has backed Israel’s right to defend itself, its concern over the fate of Palestinian civilians in Gaza has grown in parallel with Israel’s escalated bombing campaign.
On Monday, Josep Borrell, the EU’s foreign policy chief, told foreign ministers from Mediterranean countries meeting in Barcelona that he wanted the present truce between Israel and Hamas to evolve into a permanent ceasefire.
“The pause should be extended to make it sustainable and long-lasting while working for a political solution,” Borrell said.
The veteran Spanish politician also echoed von der Leyen in expressing criticism of Israeli settlement activity in the West Bank.
“I’m appalled to learn that in the middle of a war, the Israeli government is poised to commit new funds to build more illegal settlements,” Borrell wrote in a post on X/Twitter. “This is not self-defense and will not make Israel safer. The settlements are a grave IHL (International Humanitarian Law) breach, and they are Israel’s greatest security liability.”
The post Visits by EU Leaders to Israel Highlight Growing Divisions in Brussels Over War in Gaza first appeared on Algemeiner.com.
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After False Dawns, Gazans Hope Trump Will Force End to Two-Year-Old War

Palestinians walk past a residential building destroyed in previous Israeli strikes, after Hamas agreed to release hostages and accept some other terms in a US plan to end the war, in Nuseirat, central Gaza Strip October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Mahmoud Issa
Exhausted Palestinians in Gaza clung to hopes on Saturday that US President Donald Trump would keep up pressure on Israel to end a two-year-old war that has killed tens of thousands and displaced the entire population of more than two million.
Hamas’ declaration that it was ready to hand over hostages and accept some terms of Trump’s plan to end the conflict while calling for more talks on several key issues was greeted with relief in the enclave, where most homes are now in ruins.
“It’s happy news, it saves those who are still alive,” said 32-year-old Saoud Qarneyta, reacting to Hamas’ response and Trump’s intervention. “This is enough. Houses have been damaged, everything has been damaged, what is left? Nothing.”
GAZAN RESIDENT HOPES ‘WE WILL BE DONE WITH WARS’
Ismail Zayda, 40, a father of three, displaced from a suburb in northern Gaza City where Israel launched a full-scale ground operation last month, said: “We want President Trump to keep pushing for an end to the war, if this chance is lost, it means that Gaza City will be destroyed by Israel and we might not survive.
“Enough, two years of bombardment, death and starvation. Enough,” he told Reuters on a social media chat.
“God willing this will be the last war. We will hopefully be done with the wars,” said 59-year-old Ali Ahmad, speaking in one of the tented camps where most Palestinians now live.
“We urge all sides not to backtrack. Every day of delay costs lives in Gaza, it is not just time wasted, lives get wasted too,” said Tamer Al-Burai, a Gaza City businessman displaced with members of his family in central Gaza Strip.
After two previous ceasefires — one near the start of the war and another earlier this year — lasted only a few weeks, he said; “I am very optimistic this time, maybe Trump’s seeking to be remembered as a man of peace, will bring us real peace this time.”
RESIDENT WORRIES THAT NETANYAHU WILL ‘SABOTAGE’ DEAL
Some voiced hopes of returning to their homes, but the Israeli military issued a fresh warning to Gazans on Saturday to stay out of Gaza City, describing it as a “dangerous combat zone.”
Gazans have faced previous false dawns during the past two years, when Trump and others declared at several points during on-off negotiations between Hamas, Israel and Arab and US mediators that a deal was close, only for war to rage on.
“Will it happen? Can we trust Trump? Maybe we trust Trump, but will Netanyahu abide this time? He has always sabotaged everything and continued the war. I hope he ends it now,” said Aya, 31, who was displaced with her family to Deir Al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip.
She added: “Maybe there is a chance the war ends at October 7, two years after it began.”
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Mass Rally in Rome on Fourth Day of Italy’s Pro-Palestinian Protests

A Pro-Palestinian demonstrator waves a Palestinian flag during a national protest for Gaza in Rome, Italy, October 4, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Claudia Greco
Large crowds assembled in central Rome on Saturday for the fourth straight day of protests in Italy since Israel intercepted an international flotilla trying to deliver aid to Gaza, and detained its activists.
People holding banners and Palestinian flags, chanting “Free Palestine” and other slogans, filed past the Colosseum, taking part in a march that organizers hoped would attract at least 1 million people.
“I’m here with a lot of other friends because I think it is important for us all to mobilize individually,” Francesco Galtieri, a 65-year-old musician from Rome, said. “If we don’t all mobilize, then nothing will change.”
Since Israel started blocking the flotilla late on Wednesday, protests have sprung up across Europe and in other parts of the world, but in Italy they have been a daily occurrence, in multiple cities.
On Friday, unions called a general strike in support of the flotilla, with demonstrations across the country that attracted more than 2 million, according to organizers. The interior ministry estimated attendance at around 400,000.
Italy’s right-wing government has been critical of the protests, with Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni suggesting that people would skip work for Gaza just as an excuse for a longer weekend break.
On Saturday, Meloni blamed protesters for insulting graffiti that appeared on a statue of the late Pope John Paul II outside Rome’s main train station, where Pro-Palestinian groups have been holding a protest picket.
“They say they are taking to the streets for peace, but then they insult the memory of a man who was a true defender and builder of peace. A shameful act committed by people blinded by ideology,” she said in a statement.
Israel launched its Gaza offensive after Hamas terrorists staged a cross border attack on October 7, 2023, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 people hostage.
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Hamas Says It Agrees to Release All Israeli Hostages Under Trump Gaza Plan

Smoke rises during an Israeli military operation in Gaza City, as seen from the central Gaza Strip, October 2, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Dawoud Abu Alkas
Hamas said on Friday it had agreed to release all Israeli hostages, alive or dead, under the terms of US President Donald Trump’s Gaza proposal, and signaled readiness to immediately enter mediated negotiations to discuss the details.