WANA (May 10) – The former EU foreign policy chief sharply criticized the Israeli government, accusing it of committing war crimes in Gaza.

 

Josep Borrell also criticized the European Union’s response to what he described as “the largest ethnic cleansing operation since World War II.”

 

The former Spanish foreign minister, who served as the EU’s top diplomat from 2019 to 2024 and previously as President of the European Parliament from 2004 to 2007, condemned the EU’s failure to use its available tools to exert pressure on Israel.

 

Speaking at the Charles V European Award ceremony in Spain yesterday, Borrell said that the horror Israel experienced during the October 7, 2023 attacks (Operation Al-Aqsa Flood) does not justify its subsequent actions in Gaza.

 

“We are witnessing the largest ethnic cleansing since World War II,” Borrell said. “They are trying to turn the rubble of Gaza into a tourist destination, at the cost of destruction, displacement, and death for the Palestinian people.”

 

He accused the Israeli government of violating all the rules of armed conflict and using the starvation of Gaza’s civilian population as a “weapon of war.”

 

“Three times more bombs have been dropped on Gaza than on Hiroshima,” the former diplomat said. “Nothing has entered Gaza for months—no water, no food, no electricity, no fuel, no medical supplies.”

 

“We all know what’s happening there. We’ve all heard the statements from Netanyahu’s ministers—clear declarations of genocidal intent. Rarely have I seen such an explicit public plan that fits the legal definition of genocide,” Borrell added.

 

He also criticized the European Union for abandoning its moral and humanitarian responsibilities regarding Gaza.

 

“We (Europeans) supply half of the bombs that fall on Gaza,” he said. “If we truly believe that many people are dying there, our natural response should be to reduce arms supplies and insist on respect for humanitarian law—not just issue condemnations.”