A dozen foreign ministers from European and American countries, including France, Canada, and the UK, released new public statements last weekend condemning Hamas, calling for the unconditional immediate release of the remaining Israeli hostages.
The full list includes ministers of foreign affairs from the governments of France, the United Kingdom, Canada, Sweden, the Netherlands, Czechia, Finland, Ukraine, Latvia, Serbia, Panama, Paraguay, and the European Commission.
With the exception of Panama, Serbia and Paraguay, all these foreign ministers also mentioned calls for disarmament of Hamas and its future removal from power in Gaza.
The ministers' statements required ensuring a massive and unhindered flow of humanitarian aid—except for those from Czechia, Serbia, Panama, Paraguay, and the Netherlands. Some ministers (from Sweden, the UK, Canada, Finland, and Ukraine) also added the necessity of achieving a ceasefire.
French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot stood out by choosing to write his message in both French and Hebrew. This comes at a time when Franco-Israeli diplomatic tensions are at a historical low. France recently co-chaired a conference with Saudi Arabia at the UN headquarters in New York that advocated for the two-state solution.
France also announced its intention to recognize a Palestinian state at the 80th UN General Assembly in September, and encouraged the UK and Canada to do the same.
Caspar Veldkamp, minister of Netherlands’ foreign affairs, also emphasised on their former proposal to implement additional EU sanctions on Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad.
Hamas, PIJ release hostage videos of Evyatar David, Rom Braslavksi
These statements are in response to last week’s shocking videos of devastated Rom Braslavski and emaciated Evyatar David, each abducted by Palestinian Islamic Jihad and Hamas in Gaza’s tunnels for more than 666 days.
Gideon Sa'ar recently appealed to bring the hostage crisis to the forefront of the global stage in light of the outrage it has caused. On Tuesday, Sa'ar attended a special UN Security Council session in New York that he initiated, alongside Israel's UN Ambassador Danny Danon, to discuss the situation of the hostages.