The measures “are symbolic and superficial, lacking seriousness and firmness, and amount to a manoeuvre around the EU’s legal obligations under international law.”
A human rights organization has accused the European Union (EU) of evading its international obligations regarding the “grave crimes” committed by Israel in its ongoing genocidal assault on the Gaza Strip.
The EU proposes “only selective and fragmented measures that fail to utilise its real leverage tools against Israel and do nothing to halt the ongoing genocide for over 23 months,” the Geneva-based Euro-Med Human Rights Monitor said in a statement on Wednesday.
🧵The EU continues to evade its international obligations regarding the grave crimes committed by Israel in the #Gaza Strip, proposing only selective and fragmented measures that fail to utilise its real leverage tools against Israel pic.twitter.com/dibjhqw06b
— Euro-Med Monitor (@EuroMedHR) September 11, 2025
It follows the speech by European Commission Presidents Ursual von der Leyen in which she proposed “a package of measures” including a partial suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, a halt to direct financial transfers to the Israeli government and its institutions and sanctions on extremist ministers and violent illegal settlers in the occupied West Bank.
The measures “are symbolic and superficial, lacking seriousness and firmness, and amount to a manoeuvre around the EU’s legal obligations under international law,” Euro-Med Monitor said, and “are nothing more than political window dressing, while the EU continues to ignore substantive measures required under international law.”
Largest Trading Partner
The EU has been criticized for its refusal to suspend a trade agreement with Israel despite an internal review’s findings that Israel is violating human rights obligations under the terms of the Association Agreement.
The bloc is Israel’s largest trading partner, accounting for 32 percent of Israel’s total trade in goods with the world in 2024, according to its website. Total trade in goods between the EU and Israel in 2024 amounted to €42.6 billion.
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“The EU bears direct legal obligations to provide reparations to victims, given its political, economic, and military support for Israel, as well as its role in shielding Israeli violations from accountability,” Euro-Med Monitor stated.
On von der Leyen’s announcement that a Palestine Donor Group will be set up next month, the rights organization said that establishing a donor group “does not absolve the EU of these responsibilities, as both the Union and individual member states remain legally liable for their actions or omissions.”
‘No Meaningful Action’
Less than two months ago, the EU merely “monitored Israel’s compliance” with a recent agreement aimed at improving humanitarian aid access to Gaza, Euro-Med Monitor stated, “a deal that Israel has failed to implement.”
“Instead, the situation has deteriorated to the point where famine has been officially declared, yet the EU has taken no meaningful follow-up action,” it stressed.
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The organization pointed out that the EU has conducted three formal reviews over the past year, assessing Israel’s compliance with the “human rights” clause in Article 2 of the EU-Israel Association Agreement.
“All three revealed strong indications of Israel’s breach of its contractual obligations,” the rights group stated.
Corrective Measures Needed
However, it noted, none of the EU’s main institutions, including the European Commission, the European Council, and the European Parliament, has activated any of the corrective measures available under the agreement, such as invoking Article 79 to adopt appropriate measures in response to violations, or initiating the dispute settlement procedures outlined in Articles 75 and 76.
The organization emphasized that the EU has effective measures available to pressure Israel, including a comprehensive arms embargo, suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, sanctions on responsible officials and entities, a ban on settlement products, revocation of Schengen visa privileges, and immediate recognition of a Palestinian state.
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“Its failure to employ these measures reflects a lack of political will, legal integrity, and moral courage,” Euro-Med Monitor stated.
The organization called for the activation of all available legal and political mechanisms within the EU to hold Israel accountable and end the policy of impunity that fuels and enables genocide.
“This includes invoking the principle of universal jurisdiction to prosecute perpetrators of international crimes,” it stressed.
Rising Death Toll
Since reneging on the ceasefire on March 18, Israel has continued its bloody aerial bombardment across the Gaza Strip, killing and wounding thousands of Palestinians.
Starting on October 7, 2023, the Israeli military, with American support, launched a genocidal war against the people of Gaza. This campaign has so far resulted in the deaths of more than 64,700 Palestinians, with more than 163,000 wounded. The vast majority of the population has been displaced, and the destruction of infrastructure is unprecedented since World War II.
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Thousands of people are still missing.In addition to the military assault, the Israeli blockade has caused a man-made famine, leading to the deaths of hundreds of Palestinians—mostly children—with hundreds of thousands more at risk.
Despite widespread international condemnation, little has been done to hold Israel accountable. The nation is currently under investigation for genocide by the International Court of Justice, while accused war criminals, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, are officially wanted by the International Criminal Court.
(The Palestine Chronicle)
