European
Leaders Condemn Gaza Raid
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Palestinians
inspect the damage to their houses after the Israeli missile
attack
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BRUSSELS, July 23 (IslamOnline & News Agencies) - The European Union Tuesday, July 23, vigorously condemned Israel’s air strike on Gaza City, which killed at least 15 people, mostly children, saying it could wreck tentative peace moves.
“The
military operation cannot be justified in any circumstance and is a
disproportionate attack,” said a spokesman for the European
Commission, the EU’s administrative arm.
“The
European Union considers that all punitive and collective measures are
neither legitimate nor acceptable,” the commission spokesman added.
European
Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana also condemned the air raid,
warning that it could hamper tentative moves to end the heightened
conflict that erupted between Israel and the Palestinians in September
2000, Agence France-Presse (AFP) reported.
“This
extra-judicial killing operation, which targeted a densely populated
area, comes at a time when both Israeli and Palestinians were working
very seriously to curb violence and restore co-operative security
arrangements,” Solana said in a statement.
“There
were as well indications that a possible end to suicide bombings could
be reached,” he said.
“The
European Union understands the right of Israel to ensure security and
to stop the acts of terrorism against its citizens, but this kind of
operation is not conducive towards peace and reconciliation.”
European
Commission President Romano Prodi said Israel’s action would bring
only further despair and make it much more difficult to reach peace in
the Middle East.
In
London, Britain described Israel’s air strike on Gaza City as
“unacceptable and counterproductive.”
“The
action taken last night ... is unacceptable and counterproductive. We
extend our sympathy to the families of the children killed,” the
Foreign Office said in a statement.
“While
Israel is entitled to take steps to protect itself from terrorist
attack, such steps should be neither disproportionate nor
excessive,” it added.
A
missile fired by an Israeli F-16 warplane in a densely populated area
of Gaza city late Monday, July 22, killed the head of the armed wing
of the Islamic resistance movement Hamas, Salah Shehade, and his
bodyguard, along with 13 civilians.
The
Foreign Office said Britain would continue to work with its
international partners towards “a two-state solution that brings a
peace based on security for Israel and recognizes the legitimate
aspirations of the Palestinian people.”
Meanwhile,
in Cairo, Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Maher urged Tuesday the
United States to condemn the deadly Israeli air raid in Gaza and take
steps to prevent repeat such aggression.
“I
demand that Washington condemn this action strongly and take the
necessary measures to stop these attacks,” Maher said at a press
conference with Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal.
“Before
that, the Israelis said they don’t target civilians but now they are
mainly aiming at civilians,” Maher said after he and Faisal joined
Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak for talks in Cairo.
Prince
Saud said the “Arabs are now taking things into their own hands
because they can’t rely on others to solve their issues,” but he
did not elaborate.
“The
catastrophe caused by Israel in the occupied territories .... will
lead to more atrocities than we’ve seen until now,” Prince Saud
said.
The
Saudi foreign minister arrived to Cairo from Beirut and Damascus,
where he called for Arab cooperation with the diplomatic “quartet”
of top U.S., Russian, E.U. and UN officials to help resolve the Middle
East conflict, AFP said.
Egyptian
President Hosni Mubarak had appealed Monday to Israel to seize a
“golden opportunity” for peace with the Arabs and stop the
violence that only deepened hatred towards it.
“Once
again I advise Israel that they should seize this golden opportunity
right now to put an end to the Arab-Israeli conflict,” Mubarak said
in a speech marking the 50th anniversary of the creation of the
Egyptian republic.
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