BRUSSELS, Belgium — European Commissioners will on Monday discuss a proposal to partially suspend Israel’s access to the EU’s Horizon research funding program following calls from EU governments to increase pressure on Israel over the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
Multiple EU countries said last week that Israel was not living up to its commitments under an agreement with the European Union on increasing aid supplies to Gaza and asked the Commission to put concrete options on the table.
The proposal was mentioned in a published agenda of Monday’s meeting of the College of Commissioners, the top decision-making body of the European Union’s executive. But the Commission has not explained it in detail.
EU and Israeli officials had no immediate comment on the proposal.
Israel has been participating in the EU’s research programs since 1996 and has taken part in thousands of joint research projects over the past decades.
Earlier this month, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said Israel had agreed to expand humanitarian access to Gaza, including increasing the number of aid trucks, crossing points and routes to distribution hubs.
But in a tense meeting of European ambassadors in Brussels last week, countries including France, the Netherlands and Spain said not enough was being done, according to diplomats.
Also Monday, Germany said that it was prepared to take steps to pressure Israel over the soaring hunger in Gaza, without elaborating.
“The chancellor was very clear in the phone conversation with the Israeli prime minister… that the federal government is prepared to increase the pressure if progress is not made,” a German government spokesperson said, referring to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s phone call with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday.
“In principle we are prepared to take further steps, which is also the purpose of this afternoon’s security meeting,” he said, referring to a meeting of the German security cabinet.
Earlier this month, EU officials presented a list of options that the bloc could pursue to put pressure on Israel but the bloc has so far refrained from pursuing any of them.
Israel on Sunday announced a halt in military operations for 10 hours a day in parts of Gaza, as well as new corridors, to allow for the distribution of aid. Israel, Jordan and the United Arab Emirates have also airdropped supplies into the enclave. Spain said Monday it will airdrop 12 tons of aid into the Strip this week as well.
But officials and aid groups remain concerned and say much more needs to be done to alleviate the dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.
Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said Friday that at least 56 people died of causes related to malnutrition in the previous three weeks, including 22 children. That was up from 10 children who died from such causes during the five previous months, according to the agency.
Israeli authorities have denied claims of widespread famine in the enclave, but acknowledged issues with food access, blaming shortages on a lack of cooperation by the UN and other international organizations.