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Israel summons Spain, Belgium envoys over Gaza ceasefire comments

 
 Israel Foreign Minister Eli Cohen speaks during a press conference with Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis at the Foreign Ministry in Athens, Greece, July 6, 2023. (photo credit: REUTERS/LOUIZA VRADI)
Israel Foreign Minister Eli Cohen speaks during a press conference with Greek Foreign Minister Giorgos Gerapetritis at the Foreign Ministry in Athens, Greece, July 6, 2023.
(photo credit: REUTERS/LOUIZA VRADI)

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said during a visit to the Rafah border crossing in Egypt that the current ceasefire in Gaza is not enough and that a permanent ceasefire was needed.

Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, as instructed by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, summoned Belgium and Spain's Ambassadors for a reprimand in light of the comments made by their countries' leaders at the Rafah crossing today.

Cohen declared: "We condemn the false claims of the Prime Ministers of Spain and Belgium who give support to terrorism.

"Israel is acting according to international law and is fighting a murderous terrorist organization worse than ISIS that commits war crimes and crimes against humanity.

"We will resume fighting after the ceasefire until the elimination of Hamas rule in the Gaza Strip and the release of all the abductees."

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 Israel's Foreign Minister Eli Cohen speaks during a meeting on the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas at UN headquarters in New York, US, October 24, 2023 (credit: REUTERS/SHANNON STAPLETON)
Israel's Foreign Minister Eli Cohen speaks during a meeting on the conflict between Israel and the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas at UN headquarters in New York, US, October 24, 2023 (credit: REUTERS/SHANNON STAPLETON)

 Netanyahu said he strongly condemned the words of the Prime Ministers of Belgium and Spain for not placing full responsibility for the crimes against humanity committed by Hamas, who massacred Israeli citizens and used the Palestinians as human shields.

The comments made by the prime ministers

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said during a visit to the Rafah border crossing in Egypt that the current ceasefire in Gaza is not enough and that a permanent ceasefire was needed.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Friday denounced what he called the indiscriminate killing of Palestinians in Gaza, drawing an angry response from Israel which said the remarks gave terrorism a boost.

Speaking on a visit to Gaza's Rafah border with his Belgian counterpart Alexander De Croo, Sanchez also called for a lasting humanitarian ceasefire "to reverse the catastrophic situation that the people of the (Gaza) Strip are going through."


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"The indiscriminate killing of innocent civilians, including thousands of boys and girls, are completely unacceptable," he said.

A day earlier, Sanchez visited Israel and met Netanyahu, Israeli President Isaac Herzog as well as Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah, and floated the idea of an international peace conference on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict to forge a viable Palestinian state.

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Combat between Israeli troops and Hamas terrorists halted on Friday for the first time in seven weeks in a temporary truce ahead of the planned release of Israeli hostages held by the terrorists in exchange for jailed Palestinians.

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