LONDON, July 21. /TASS/. The foreign ministers of 25 countries and European Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib are asking Israel to stop hostilities in the Gaza Strip so that much-needed aid can enter the territory.

"We, the signatories listed below, come together with a simple, urgent message: the war in Gaza must end now," the statement reads.

"The Israeli government’s aid delivery model is dangerous, fuels instability and deprives Gazans of human dignity," the document says. "We call on the Israeli government to immediately lift restrictions on the flow of aid and to urgently enable the UN and humanitarian NGOs to do their life-saving work safely and effectively."

The document was signed by foreign ministers of Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, The Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK, as well as by the EU commissioner for equality, preparedness and crisis management.

Settlement issue

They condemned the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel and urged the "immediate and unconditional release" of all hostages.

The document also urges both parties "to protect civilians and uphold the obligations of international humanitarian law."

The signatories condemned plans to build the new E1 (East 1) settlement in the West Bank. "The E1 settlement plan announced by Israel’s Civil Administration, if implemented, would divide a Palestinian state in two, marking a flagrant breach of international law and critically undermine the two-state solution," the document reads.

Israel's ongoing construction in the West Bank is considered one of the main barriers to resolving the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. In December 2016, the UN Security Council adopted Resolution 2334 demanding that Israel immediately and completely cease all settlement activities in the occupied Palestinian territories. Israel responded by stating that it would not comply with the order.

The document also contains a call to the parties and the international community "to unite in a common effort to bring this terrible conflict to an end, through an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire." It expresses support to mediation efforts of the United States, Qatar and Egypt.

Situation in Middle East

Tensions erupted in the Middle East on October 7, 2023, when militants from the Gaza Strip-based radical Palestinian movement Hamas staged a surprise attack on Israeli territory from Gaza, killing residents of Israeli border settlements and taking over 200 hostages, including women, children and the elderly. In response, Israel announced a total siege of the Gaza Strip and has been delivering rocket attacks on the Palestinian enclave as well as some districts in Lebanon and Syria. International humanitarian aid deliveries to Gaza stopped on March 2, 2025, as all border crossings remain closed under Israel’s decision.