Belgian gov’t to discuss recognition of Palestinian state

ISTANBUL

Belgium’s government will discuss recognizing the state of Palestine on Friday as it called on Israel to stop starving civilians in Gaza.

"Israel must stop starving civilians, including children, and let sufficient humanitarian aid into Gaza," Development Minister Caroline Gennez said on X.

Gennez also pointed to the additional measures taken against Israel by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in the genocide case against the country upon South Africa's request.

"The ICJ’s decision is clear. Hunger as a weapon of war is a flagrant violation of international law. We must keep up international pressure. Recognition of a Palestinian state is on the government’s agenda tomorrow," she said.

In Thursday’s additional measures, the ICJ ruled that Israel must ensure unimpeded delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza and not violate the rights of Palestinians.

Israel has waged a deadly military offensive on the Palestinian enclave since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by the Palestinian resistance group Hamas, in which 1,139 Israelis were killed.




More than 32,500 Palestinians have since been killed and more than 74,900 injured amid mass destruction and shortages of necessities.




The Israeli army has also imposed a blockade on the Gaza Strip, leaving most of the population, particularly residents of the north, on the verge of starvation.




The Israeli war has pushed 85% of Gaza’s population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.




Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which in an interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.

In its Thursday verdict indicating additional measures, the top court ordered Israel to ensure "unhindered provision" of urgent aid to Gaza. The ICJ said that “Palestinians in Gaza are no longer facing only a risk of famine...but that famine is setting in.”