EU envoy says Israel cannot condition Gaza humanitarian aid on hostage deal

Interview

Rina Bassist

May 2, 2024

People rush to landing humanitarian aid packages dropped over the northern Gaza Strip on April 23, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict in the Palestinian territory between Israel and the militant group Hamas. — AFP via Getty Images

BRUSSELS — As Egypt pushes for a hostage release and cease-fire deal between Israel and Hamas, the European Union is reiterating that expanding humanitarian aid should not be up for negotiation.

Sven Koopmans is the European Union's special representative to the Middle East peace process. "We believe, what we stand for, is that people, innocent civilians, deserve to live. Nobody can be deprived of food, water and all that is necessary to sustain human lives. That cannot be made part of negotiations," he told Al-Monitor.

Koopmans, a former Dutch politician and international lawyer, has held his current position in Brussels for three years. Before that, he served as the European Union's international civilian representative in Kosovo (2008-2009), EU special representative for Sudan and South Sudan (2011-2013) and senior mediation expert to the UN special envoy for Syria (2014-2016). Appointed directly by the European Union’s 27 foreign ministers, he works under EU’s foreign affairs chief, Josep Borrell.

While in Riyadh Monday, Borrell said that at least five EU members, including Spain, Ireland, Belgium, Slovenia and Malta, are expected to recognize Palestinian statehood by the end of May.