Senior Israeli, Palestinian officials meet in Brussels

The foreign ministers of Israel and Palestine came face to face in Brussels on Monday at a European Union-hosted event ahead of a debate between EU member states about possible measures against Israel over the on-going Gaza crisis.

Although the officials have met before at the United Nations, the Euronews website reported Monday's meeting was a more intimate and high-level encounter, as part of the EU-Southern Neighborhood framework, an arrangement that deals with relations between the 27-member bloc and countries in North Africa and the Middle East, including Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, and Syria.

Gideon Saar attended on behalf of Israel's government and Varsen Aghabekian Shahin represented the Palestinian Authority.

It was the first high-level Brussels-organized meeting with representations from both sides since the Hamas terror attack on Israel on Oct 7, 2023, which saw more than 1,000 people killed and hundreds more taken hostage, and that sparked the ongoing Israeli military action in Gaza.

On Sunday, the Palestinian Ministry of Health reported the death toll in Gaza had passed 58,000.

But Saar insisted Israel has no intention of controlling Gaza in the long term and said "we have only security concerns". He was also adamant Hamas could have no part in the future of the territory.

"If Hamas is ready to lay down its arms, if they are ready to demilitarize the Gaza Strip, we can do it in a political path," he said.

He rejected international criticism that has said Israel's behavior had been disproportionate, comparing it to action taken against the so-called Islamic State group by Western powers in recent years.

A Palestinian representative told Euronews the Brussels meeting was an opportunity for Palestine to make its voice heard, and for it to draw attention to the pressures Israel had put it under.

"We would like for us as Palestinians to speak for ourselves at this meeting and send a message to Europeans about the humanitarian crisis for Palestinians and ask that they take measures against Israel," said the official. "We want to push for elections for Palestinian people and find a political solution to our situation."