EU should oppose Israel stopping water supplies to Gaza as it did in Ukraine: Borrell

The European Union “cannot accept” Israel stopping water supplies to Gaza’s population, which “clearly” violates international law, the bloc’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Wednesday.

“Suspending the water supply to a community under siege is contrary to international law. But we can’t accept that,” he told the European Parliament in Strasbourg.

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That was the EU’s position when it came to Ukraine, where Russian forces besieged communities and cut off water, and it should be the same when it came to Gaza, he added.

“It is clearly stated that depriving a human community under siege of a basic water supply is contrary to international law -- in Ukraine and in Gaza.

“And if we are unable to say so, for both places, we lack the moral authority necessary to make our voice heard,” Borrell said.

His comments come amid mixed messages in the European Union over developments in the Israel-Hamas conflict.

There was widespread and repeated condemnation of Hamas’ bloody October 7 assault on Israeli civilians near Gaza. But EU countries, officials and lawmakers have differed in their reaction to Israel’s retaliatory military action against Gaza.

Most emphasize that Israel has to comply with international humanitarian law, which prohibits collective punishment of populations, the targeting of civilians and disproportionate actions.

But Borrell, the top foreign policy representative of the 27 EU member countries, was more explicit in saying that Israel’s decision to cut water supplies to Gaza violated international law.

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) says most of Gaza’s 2.3 million inhabitants no longer have water and some have been forced to drink from contaminated sources.

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