By ABC News
Copyright abc
The European Commission has proposed new tariffs and sanctions to pressure Israel to end the war in Gaza.
Kaja Kallas, the EU’s foreign policy chief, urged the 27 member nations to increase tariffs on some Israeli goods and impose sanctions on 10 Hamas leaders and Israeli settlers.
She also called for sanctions to be placed on Israel’s National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich.
The sanctions would freeze any of the individuals’ European assets and ban travel within the EU.
If enough EU nations agree, tariffs amounting to about €230 million ($407 million) will be slapped on the 37 per cent of the €15.9 billion of Israeli goods imported to the EU, European Commissioner for Trade, Maroš Šefčovič said.
The commission is proposing to revoke the zero-tariff preference for a select amount of imported Israeli goods and instead fall back on World Trade Organization tariffs, which vary from 8 per cent to 40 per cent on individual goods.
“We’re not proposing to suspend trade with Israel, we are proposing to suspend trade preferences,” said a senior European official tasked with communicating for the European Commission but not authorised to be publicly named according to commission policy.
They said that Israeli arms exports to the EU will remain unaffected under the proposal.
Pressuring Israel to end the war
On Wednesday, the Hamas-run Gaza health authority announced the death toll in the Palestinian enclave had topped 65,000 people since the war began October 7, 2023, with a Hamas-led attack on Israel.
“We are proposing these measures not to punish Israel or Israel people, but to really try to pressure Israeli government to change course and to end the human suffering in Gaza,” Ms Kallas said.
The commission also gives support to the Palestinian Authority.
Israel denies there is starvation in Gaza and says it allows in enough humanitarian aid.
The EU is Israel’s largest trading partner, so the tariffs might have far-reaching effects on Israel’s economy, which is already rattled by the cost of a long war.
Roughly €32 million ($56.7 million) in bilateral funds controlled by the European Commission would be immediately suspended.
Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar sent a letter to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen vowing that Israel will buck the European campaign.
“Pressure through sanctions will not work. The State of Israel is a proud sovereign nation, and we will not be bent through threats while Israel’s security is at stake,” he wrote in the letter.
EU members divided over Israel
The 27-nation EU bloc has been split over the war in the Gaza Strip.
It is unclear whether a majority will agree to endorse the sanctions and trade measures.
The bloodshed in Gaza has prompted protests in multiple European cities, from Amsterdam to Barcelona, and fuelled criticism of Brussels’ bureaucracy over its perceived inability to meaningfully pressure Israel to halt military operations and let in more humanitarian aid.
“The proposed partial suspension is a carefully considered response to an increasingly urgent situation,” said Mr Šefčovič, the European Commission trade representative.
The proposal followed the announcement last week by Ms von der Leyen that she will seek sanctions and a partial trade suspension against Israel over its military campaign in Gaza, breaking with her strong pro-Israel stance.
Other European officials speaking on background said that Israel’s military campaign in Gaza and also increasingly violent settlement activity in the West Bank spearheaded by Mr Ben-Gvir and Mr Smotrich had given “new momentum” to the sanctions.
