“The pressure from the European Union on the Israeli government over Gaza is in the right direction,” PASOK MEP Nikos Papandreou said in a statement.

Papandreou criticized the Greek government for not co-signing the EU text and stressed that the international community cannot turn a blind eye to the humanitarian crisis caused by the two-month blockade of Gaza by the Israelis.

In detail, Papandreou’s statement

“Gaza is on the verge of starvation, and no one can turn a blind eye to this humanitarian crisis.

The pressure from the European Union on the government of Israel is in the right direction. In contrast, the Greek government’s refusal to co-sign such a document is an unfortunate fact.

We recognize Israel’s right to self-defense and protection, but war has rules, including the protection of civilians.”

As is known, the Dutch government at yesterday’s meeting of EU foreign ministers managed to gather acceptance of its proposal from a total of 17 member states, so that the Commission can start a process to review the 25-year-old Association Agreement with Israel.

Specifically, the Commission, because of the two-month blockade of the Gaza Strip, will assess whether Israel has violated its human rights obligations under Article 2 of the agreement, which outlines the full range of diplomatic and economic relations between the two sides.