EU Commission Unveils Sanctions on Israel in Major Political Shift 

The European Union’s executive branch, the European Commission, unveiled plans Wednesday to downgrade trade ties with Israel and sanction top officials over reports of human rights violations in Gaza, signaling a major shift in the bloc’s stance toward the country after coming under pressure to take action, Politico reported. 

The measures – which do not currently have enough support among the member countries to yet be passed – aim to suspend a trade arrangement affecting about $6.87 billion of Israeli exports, Reuters noted.  

The EU is Israel’s top trading partner, with trade in goods between the two amounting to about $50 billion last year. Should the free-trade deal be suspended, Israel would face the same duties as countries without an agreement with the bloc. The result would be an estimated $269 million a year in duties, a senior European Commission official said.  

The plan also proposed sanctions on two staunch members of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir, and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, as well as “violent” Israeli settlers, and 10 senior members of the Palestinian militant group Hamas.  

Parts of the proposal also concern the suspension of about $16 billion in direct support for some Israeli projects. 

The proposed measures are more restrained than those wanted by some EU member states. EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said the EU took a targeted approach to compel Netanyahu’s government to take action regarding the humanitarian situation in Gaza while avoiding penalizing the Israeli society at large. 

At the same time, the move is expected to face opposition from some EU members. It has also triggered a furious response from Israel, with Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar accusing EU chief Ursula von der Leyen of empowering terrorists. 

Von der Leyen opted to move ahead with the proposals despite the fact that EU members will likely block them from being formally adopted.  

The proposal to impose tariffs on Israeli imports must be approved by a qualified majority of EU countries – 15 out of 27 EU members – while the sanctions on Israeli government members must be unanimous to take effect. 

So far, both trade measures and sanctions lack enough support with opposition coming from members including Austria, Italy, Hungary, and Germany. The latter said it has not made a final decision on the proposals because it wants to keep open “the channels of dialogue” with Israel. 

For months, von der Leyen has been under pressure to get tougher on Israel because some EU leaders, such as Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, political groups, and even members of her institution have complained over what they say is a lack of action over the abuses in Gaza.  

Thousands of people have also taken to the streets across Europe in recent months, calling on their governments to pressure Israel into ending its war on Gaza, Al Jazeera noted. A report published Tuesday by a United Nations independent commission found that Israel has committed genocide in the Gaza Strip. 

While the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza has angered public opinion, Kallas said she thinks “the political lines are very much in the place where they have been so far.”