2023-11-08 18:14:00
Belgium’s position with regard to the war between Israel and the terrorist organization Hamas had to be adjusted to the reality on the ground. Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open VLD) has toughened his tone regarding the way in which the IDF is fighting the Islamist executioners responsible for the pogroms of October 7 in the Gaza Strip.
Tuesday, following meeting the King of Jordan in Brussels, the boss of Vivaldi held a press conference during which he distanced himself from the current operations. “If you bomb an entire refugee camp with the intention of eliminating a terrorist, I don’t think it’s proportionate, it goes too far,” he said. Alexander De Croo was referring to strikes attributed to Israel that hit the Maghazi refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip.
The head of the Belgian government, and his coalition behind him, do not deny Israel the right to defend itself. For Belgian diplomacy, the return of hostages captured by Hamas is, moreover, an absolute priority. But all the same… The mutation of the discourse, if it is subtle, is also tangible.
A few days following the massacres of innocents in Israel, Alexander De Croo spoke in La Libre on this subject. Here is the analysis he then gave on the situation in the Middle East. “It is normal that Israel now reacts to protect its population. On the other hand, I hope that everything will be done to avoid additional civilian deaths also on the Palestinian side. But, let’s be clear, who is endangering the population in Gaza? It’s Hamas. We are currently examining the nature of the Israeli response, but we might examine what the Hamas terrorists are doing. They might, for example, release the hostages, recognize that they have gone too far… It’s too easy to point the finger at the Israeli reaction.”
“We must first free the hostages”
Of course, between the publication of this interview and Belgium’s position expressed at the beginning of this week, the Israeli army’s response has gained momentum. Which prompted this adaptation of the Belgian line. “There is no development, in reality,” confides those around the Prime Minister. We have always said that there needs to be a de-escalation. But we must first free the Israeli hostages and we continue to say it. Likewise, it has always been said that Israel must be balanced in its responses. The response took place and we see that it is not, or not always, proportionate.”
And what is the atmosphere like in Vivaldi? Within the federal majority, discordant voices were heard. But without calling into question Belgium’s position. On Monday, the Federal Minister of Climate, the ecologist Zakia Khattabi, caused a political and media shockwave by kicking in to avoid publicly declaring that Hamas is a terrorist organization. And this, under an implausible pretext: she did not know the legal definition of the term “terrorist”, she asserted… Her party, however, did not follow her on this slippery slope. Écolo recalled that he saw Hamas as a terrorist group (which has also been the European position for more than twenty years).
Brussels MP Fouad Ahidar (Vooruit) compares Israel’s action in Gaza to the Shoah: “We use practically the same methods as in Auschwitz”
An embargo that makes you sputter…
Another small Vivaldian shock: the question of the boycott to be put in place, or not, with regard to products coming from the Palestinian territories occupied by the Israelis and imported into Belgium. This already old demand of the left-wing parties in Belgium has returned to the table due to current events. Within Vivaldi, socialists and ecologists were joined by the CD&V to demand an embargo. The MR is much more reluctant. But, at this stage, this very symbolic issue does not cause much stir.
This Wednesday, during a kern (the informal body which brings together the main federal ministers) devoted to the situation in the Gaza Strip, the point was raised but without clashes. “Each Deputy Prime Minister expressed his point of view and we moved on,” notes a federal source laconically. Another informant close to the matter gives a little more detail on the discussions: “Different options were mentioned during the Kern, but all require further study because their implementation is complex and involves quite a few players. The priority is to continue the work to help the Belgians on the ground, obtain an immediate humanitarian ceasefire and contribute to de-escalation in the region.”
Belgium is the fourth largest importer of Israeli products in the European Union
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