EU doesn't have unified position on Gaza war, says foreign policy chief

EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said on Tuesday that the bloc does not have a unified position on the ongoing war on Gaza.

In reference to the efforts to secure a cease-fire in Gaza, including the recent trilateral one by Egypt, Qatar, and the US, Borrell said at a joint news conference in Cairo with Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, "We are almost there, but we are not there. Why? Quite simple: Because those who are waging war have no interest in putting an end to it."

“Because their intransigence is accompanied by total impunity and their acts have no consequence,” Borrell emphasized.

When asked specifically about the EU's position on the carnage in Gaza caused by Israel's extensive and ongoing attacks, he said the bloc has been the largest provider of humanitarian aid to the besieged enclave.

“But at the same time, you know very well that this issue is a very dividing issue inside the European Union, with different member states having different positions, and they have to represent a common position,” he pointed out.

Israel's ongoing war on the Gaza Strip – now nearly a year old – has killed around 41,100 Palestinians, mostly women and children, and injured nearly 94,800 others, according to local health authorities.

A continuing blockade of the enclave has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine, leaving much of the region in ruins.

Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice for its actions in Gaza.