Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (pictured left) and Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar (right) wrote on Wednesday to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen calling on the Commission to conduct an "urgent review" of whether Israel is complying with bilateral agreements and to propose "appropriate" measures if Israel is found to have violated "human rights and democratic principles" contained in the EU–Israel Association Agreement.
Sanchez and Varadkar said Israel's military operation in the Rafah area "poses a grave and imminent threat that the international community must urgently confront." They pointed out the "appalling human suffering, physical destruction and collective trauma of civilians" in the Gaza Strip. They also recalled that the International Court of Justice (ICJ) recently ordered Israel to ensure Palestinians in Gaza have access to basic services and humanitarian assistance and that Israel is currently fighting a case at the ICJ alleging it committed genocide.
