{"id":429741,"date":"2025-06-16T15:08:16","date_gmt":"2025-06-16T13:08:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/2025\/06\/16\/guerra-israele-iran-palestina-gaza-manif\/"},"modified":"2025-06-16T16:29:43","modified_gmt":"2025-06-16T14:29:43","slug":"israels-war-against-iran-overshadows-gaza-catastrophe","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/2025\/06\/16\/israels-war-against-iran-overshadows-gaza-catastrophe\/","title":{"rendered":"Israel’s war against Iran overshadows Gaza catastrophe"},"content":{"rendered":"

Brussels – The European Union\u00a0continues to sit on the sidelines in the Middle East crisis<\/strong>, which is spiralling ever more dangerously after Israel opened yet another war front by directly attacking Iran<\/strong>, accusing the Islamic Republic of being one step away from the atomic bomb.<\/p>\n

With the eyes of the world focused on Tehran and Tel Aviv, the umpteenth conflict unleashed by Benjamin Netanyahu<\/strong> distracts attention from the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza<\/strong>: the UN conference on Palestine<\/strong> called for by Emmanuel Macron<\/strong> is cancelled and postponed sine die<\/em>. But from the squares of Brussels and The Hague comes a strong demand for ‘red\u00a0<\/strong>lines’\u00a0<\/strong>against<\/span>\u00a0violations of international law by the Jewish state.<\/p>\n

Europe without a voice<\/h3>\n

The\u00a0sudden\u00a0escalation<\/strong><\/span>\u00a0between Israel and Iran<\/strong> has abruptly attracted<\/a> the attention of the political world and will dominate the agenda of the ongoing G7 summit in Kananaskis<\/strong>, Canada. Upon her arrival at the summit, Ursula von der Leyen<\/strong>\u00a0reiterated\u00a0<\/a>this<\/span>\u00a0morning (16 June) “Europe’s commitment to peace and stability in the Middle East<\/strong>“, emphasising that “Israel has the right to defend itself<\/strong>“, even pre-emptively, from existential threats to its security.<\/p>\n

According to the president of the twelve-star executive, “Iran is the main source of instability in the region<\/strong>” and Tehran “can never have a nuclear weapon”<\/strong>, even if, for now,\u00a0there is no evidence that the Islamic Republic is building atomic devices<\/strong>. The common denominator of the comments repeated in recent days by EU summits and various European leaders is the request for “moderation” and “de-escalation”<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"Ursula<\/a>
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and the President of the European Council, Ant\u00f3nio Costa, at the G7 in Kananaskis (photo: Lukasz Kobus\/European Commission)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

High Representative Kaja Kallas<\/strong> convened an emergency Foreign Affairs Council<\/strong> in virtual format tomorrow. The chancelleries are concerned about the possible eruption of a wider regional conflict<\/strong>, and some of them (especially Berlin and Paris, in coordination with London) are reportedly trying to pursue a diplomatic initiative behind the scenes<\/strong>, in the hope that negotiations on the ayatollahs’ nuclear programme could resume as early as next week<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

However, according to experts and observers, the chances that Europe can\u00a0actually get a look <\/strong>in this game are near zero<\/strong>. The real interlocutors are not on the Old Continent, but elsewhere. One is surely the US President Donald Trump<\/strong>, who is also leaving the door open for dialogue with the Islamic Republic, even though among the cadres<\/strong>\u00a0murdered by the Israeli army (IDF)<\/strong> was precisely the Iranian chief negotiator<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

Recognition of Palestine\u00a0moves further away<\/h3>\n

Among the victims of the recent military escalation is also the Gaza Strip<\/strong>, which now risks falling into oblivion or at least sliding down the list of European governments’ priorities. For logistical, physical, security, and political reasons,<\/strong> French President Emmanuel Macron<\/strong> cancelled the UN conference on Palestine,<\/strong> which he announced last month<\/a>, originally scheduled for this week at the UN Headquarters in New York.<\/p>\n

The event, co-chaired by France<\/strong> and Saudi Arabia,<\/strong> was supposed to serve as a political catalyst to accelerate the two-state solution, via the recognition of the Palestinian state by European countries<\/strong> and the normalisation of Arab nations’ diplomatic relations with Israel<\/strong>. The tenant of the Elys\u00e9e Palace, however, says he is determined to host the conference, which will be rescheduled for the near future: “This delay does not call into question our determination<\/strong> to pursue the implementation of the two-state solution<\/strong>,” he said on Friday, reiterating “my determination to recognise a Palestinian state<\/strong>“. “This determination is total and is a sovereign decision,” he added.<\/p>\n

\"Emmanuel<\/a>
French President Emmanuel Macron (photo via Imagoeconomica)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

In recent times, Monsieur le Pr\u00e9sident<\/i> has been increasingly critical<\/strong> of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu<\/strong>‘s choices, going so far as to claim that the violence of the campaign in the Strip represents “a betrayal of Israel’s history and identity<\/strong>” that will prove “dangerous” for Tel Aviv’s own security. In response, he has been accused of leading “a crusade against the Jewish state<\/strong>“, while both Israel and the US repeat that recognising Palestine<\/strong> after the 7 October 2023 attacks would be a “reward for terrorism.<\/strong>“<\/p>\n

Macron has reiterated that he does not support the Operation ‘Rampant Lion’<\/strong> (whose name, referring to the lion in the flag of pre-revolutionary Iran, winks at an eventual regime change in Tehran<\/strong>). But given that it\u00a0has opened this new front against the Islamic Republic<\/strong>, argues\u00a0Monsieur le Pr\u00e9sident<\/em>, Bibi should at least\u00a0grant a ceasefire in Gaza<\/strong>, setting the stage for the start of ‘political discussions’ for a permanent solution to the Israeli-Palestinian question.<\/p>\n

Currently, 147 out of 193 UN members officially recognise the State of Palestine<\/strong>. These include 11 EU members (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Croatia, Finland, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Hungary), but all G7 countries<\/strong> (among others) are still missing from the list. For months, Macron has been saying that he wants to proceed with recognition on the French side<\/strong>, provided that this is the basis for a serious and lasting peace process.<\/p>\n

What red lines?<\/h3>\n

However, apart from political moves by some chancelleries<\/strong> and (a few) cosmetic measures at the level of the Twenty-Seven<\/strong> (e.g. the revision of the EU-Israel Association Agreement<\/a>), there do not seem to be any real “red lines” to condition Western support<\/strong> for Netanyahu’s ultranationalist government, in light of the ongoing humanitarian catastrophe in the Strip<\/strong>. Von der Leyen says she had “insisted and urged that humanitarian aid<\/strong>, which is currently not reaching Gaza, be allowed<\/strong>” during a phone call with the Israeli premier, adding that she will carefully review the facts<\/strong> to assess the situation.<\/p>\n

Contrary to what is falsely claimed in some of the propaganda videos circulated on social media by the Tel Aviv Foreign Ministry<\/strong>, however, humanitarian assistance for the population of the Strip is still blocked<\/strong>, while the incidents<\/strong> in which dozens of Palestinians are killed daily by the IDF continue to occur.<\/p>\n

\n

Powerful. There were over 100,000 of us in Brussels today.<\/p>\n

At the same time, 150,000 people demonstrated in The Hague.<\/p>\n

Europeans reject the complicity of their governments.<\/p>\n

We drew a red line. Israel has crossed it.<\/p>\n

Embargo now. #FreePalestine<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/xolXeZ3tkM<\/a><\/p>\n

– Marc Botenga MEP (@BotengaM) June 15, 2025<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

So, over the weekend,\u00a0floods of citizens gathered to peacefully protest <\/strong>against the ‘complicity’ of Europe, which continues to supply Tel Aviv with weapons<\/a> and to buy military technology and surveillance systems made in Israel<\/i>, and explicitly demand that red lines be clearly drawn<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

A double demonstration<\/strong> held in parallel between Brussels<\/strong> and The Hague<\/strong> brought more than 200,000 people to the streets (110,000 and 150,000 respectively, according to the organisers) to call for a cessation of hostilities<\/strong> in Gaza, an end to impunity<\/strong> for the Israeli leadership, including the arrest of the prime minister (wanted by the International Criminal Court<\/a> for war crimes and crimes against humanity<\/strong>) and the imposition of sanctions<\/strong> against the Jewish state, as already done<\/a>\u00a0by several non-EU countries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

At the G7 the ‘great’ of the Earth will talk about Tel Aviv’s escalation against Tehran, while Palestine takes a back seat. UN conference in New York cancelled, but Europeans continue to take to the streets in solidarity with the people of the Strip<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7876,"featured_media":372391,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","podmotor_file_id":"","podmotor_episode_id":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","filesize_raw":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard","override":[{"template":"1","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"right-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"top","share_float_style":"share-monocrhome","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"0","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"0","show_post_related":"1","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0","subtitle":""},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[25707],"tags":[25890,31262,25907,27224,26825,27569,31494,25795],"class_list":["post-429741","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-world-politics","tag-benjamin-netanyahu-en","tag-humanitarian-aid-en","tag-iran-in-2","tag-war-israele-iran-en","tag-stripe-di-gaza-en"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429741","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7876"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=429741"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429741\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":429750,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/429741\/revisions\/429750"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/372391"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=429741"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=429741"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.eunews.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=429741"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}