It would be “completely unacceptable” for Israel to attack Rafah, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said.
Asked whether an Israeli attack on the southern Gazan city would constitute a “red line” and result in EU sanctions against Israel, von der Leyen said: “I’m never drawing red lines, but I think it would be completely unacceptable if [Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin] Netanyahu would invade.”
Von der Leyen also said the Commission would “sit down with our member states and act on that” if Israel invaded Rafah.
The Commission president, who is running for a second term, made the remarks at a debate co-hosted by POLITICO in Maastricht.
In response to a question about how she proposes to end the war in Gaza, von der Leyen said she has always defended Israel’s right to defend itself, while calling on Israel’s leaders to act within the limits of humanitarian and international law.
Von der Leyen said she had visited Rafah and found it “unbearable” and “unacceptable” how many “innocent civilians” and “especially children” are dying.
She called for a ceasefire, the release of hostages held by Hamas, and a two-state solution.
“This is the only solution that will bring peace to the region,” she said.
Israel is threatening to invade Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, where over half of Gaza’s population is sheltering.
U.S. Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Monday called on Hamas to accept an Israeli ceasefire offer in what is seen as last-chance talks on a deal before a Rafah invasion begins.
President Joe Biden urged Netanyahu not to launch an operation in the territory in a phone call on Sunday.
In the Maastricht debate, Anders Vistisen, of the far-right Identity and Democracy group, avoided the subject of sanctions and instead said the EU’s “main responsibility” is “to combat the rise of antisemitism we are seeing all across the European continent as a result of this conflict.”
Walter Baier, from the Party of the European Left, said he found it “simply ridiculous to hear from a representative of a far-right party presenting himself as a defender against antisemitism.”
Von der Leyen: ‘Completely unacceptable’ for Israel to attack Rafah
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