EU’s divided response to Gaza humanitarian crisis

An analysis by Politico sheds light on the European Union’s faltering efforts to respond meaningfully to the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. Despite growing international concern and the mounting death toll among Palestinians, Brussels remains deeply divided over whether to impose trade sanctions or punitive measures against Israel.

According to Politico, the European Commission is expected to unveil a set of proposals that would suspend preferential trade arrangements with Israel and impose sanctions on violent Israeli settlers and far-right ministers. This announcement is strategically timed, coming just a day after a United Nations commission concluded that "Israel is perpetrating genocide," and as Israeli forces intensify ground operations in Gaza City.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, under pressure for her perceived inaction, is reportedly pushing for a tougher stance. As Politico notes, “von der Leyen has been under mounting pressure in recent weeks to take a tougher line against Benjamin Netanyahu’s government as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza worsened.”

Kaja Kallas, the EU’s chief diplomat, emphasised the potential impact of the proposed measures: “Definitely this step will have a high cost for Israel,” she told Euronews. The EU remains Israel’s largest trading partner, with trade totaling €42.6 billion last year — a third of which could be subject to new duties.

However, Politico argues that the reality is more complicated. The likelihood of the proposals passing in the short term is low, with resistance from several key EU member states. The report highlights the EU’s “record of action against what its leaders have condemned as Israel’s man-made famine this year” as being largely symbolic. A previously proposed minor penalty — suspending parts of the Horizon Europe research cooperation program — failed to gain traction even 51 days after its introduction.

Germany stands at the heart of this paralysis. Chancellor Friedrich Merz, although increasingly critical of Netanyahu’s administration, faces a politically fraught landscape. Last month, he halted weapons exports to Israel, only to face backlash from within his own party. 

As Plitico explains, now, nobody in Brussels believes Merz is about to buckle and endorse von der Leyen’s plans to suspend the EU’s trade deal with Israel, even if some believe Germany and others will support more sanctions against Israeli settlers.

The deeper issue, particularly for Germany, lies in its historical memory. Merz, in an emotional speech in Munich, said:

“In politics and society, we have turned a blind eye for too long to the fact that a considerable number of the people who have come to Germany in recent decades were socialized in countries of origin where antisemitism is virtually state doctrine, where hatred of Israel is taught even to children.”

Formal sanctions against Israeli ministers require unanimous support among the 27 EU states — a threshold unlikely to be met. Alongside Germany, Italy, Poland, Hungary, and Austria have also resisted the proposed punitive measures.

Politico concludes that von der Leyen’s push for action may be stalled indefinitely. As she herself admitted, “this is stuck without a majority. We must overcome this. We cannot afford to be paralyzed.” Yet, for now, paralysis appears to define the EU’s collective response.

By Sabina Mammadli