European Union Pushes For Palestinian Statehood, Rejecting Israeli Leader's Insistence It's Off The Table

BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union foreign ministers argued Monday that the creation of a Palestinian state is the only credible way to achieve peace in the Middle East, and they expressed concern about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s clear rejection of the idea.

“The declarations of Benjamin Netanyahu are worrying. There will be a need for a Palestinian state with security guarantees for all,” French Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Sejourne told reporters in Brussels, where the EU ministers met to discuss the war in Gaza.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz and Jordan’s foreign minister, Ayman Safadi, also were in Belgium’s capital for the discussion. The issue of Gaza’s future also has set Israel in opposition to the United States and its Arab allies as they work to mediate an end to the fighting in the besieged Palestinian territory.

The Palestinian death toll from the war between Israel and Hamas surpassed 25,000, the Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza reported. Israel said Sunday that another of the hostages taken during the Oct. 7 attack that triggered the war had died.

The EU is the world’s top provider of aid to the Palestinians, but holds little leverage over Israel, despite being its biggest trading partner. The 27 member countries are also deeply divided in their approach. But as the death toll in Gaza mounts, so do calls for a halt to the fighting.

“Gaza is in a situation of extreme urgency. There is a risk of famine. There is a risk of epidemics. The violence must stop,” said Belgian Foreign Minister Hadja Lahbib, whose country holds the EU’s rotating presidency.

“We demand an immediate cease-fire, the release of the hostages, the respect of international law, (and) a return to the peace process,