As European Union leaders and foreign ministers prepare to meet over the escalating situation in Israel and Palestine, growing pressure is mounting within Brussels to amend or withdraw proposed sanctions against two far-right Israeli ministers and to halt plans to suspend the EU-Israel trade deal.
According to diplomatic sources, Israel’s new ambassador to the EU and some member state representatives have been lobbying the European Commission to reconsider its proposals — a move critics warn would severely undermine the bloc’s credibility on human rights and international law.
The measures under discussion include sanctions against Israeli ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich, both accused of promoting policies amounting to ethnic cleansing and collective punishment of Palestinians. In June, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, and Norway imposed sanctions on the two, while several EU governments declared them personae non gratae. However, the EU has yet to act collectively, as sanctions require unanimity among member states.
Despite findings that Israel has breached Article 2 of the EU–Israel Association Agreement, which mandates respect for human rights as an essential condition of trade relations, EU states have not yet moved to suspend the deal. A recent review referencing UN reports and the July 2024 International Court of Justice ruling — which found Israel’s occupation unlawful and characterized by apartheid-like abuses — underscored that these violations persist, even amid a fragile Gaza ceasefire.
Both sanctions and suspension of the trade pact are included in the annex to the September 2025 New York Declaration on implementing a two-state solution, led by France and Saudi Arabia. While most EU states endorsed the UN resolution and several recognized a Palestinian state, few have taken concrete action to fulfill those commitments.
Analysts say any retreat from sanctions or accountability would erode the EU’s standing as a defender of human rights. “Rather than easing pressure now, the EU must act on its own findings, uphold international law, and end the impunity that fuels ongoing crimes,” rights advocates argue.
