ISTANBUL

Israeli forces killing more than 5,000 children and destroying almost half of Gaza is "unacceptable," said the EU foreign policy chief on Monday.

The international public sees the "suffering of the civilian population of Gaza, depriving them of basic needs" and "turning half of Gaza into rubble" as "unacceptable," Josep Borrell told the 8th Regional Forum of the Union for the Mediterranean held in Barcelona, Spain.

Borrell added that Israeli settlers' violence in the West Bank done under "Israeli police and military protection" won't make Israel safer and is a "grave breach of international humanitarian law."

"A Palestinian State in Gaza, in the West Bank and East Jerusalem is the best and only long-term guarantee for Israel’s security. There will not be peace or security for Israel without a Palestinian State," he added.

Israel launched a massive military campaign in the Gaza Strip following a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

It has since killed at least 14,854 Palestinians, including 6,150 children and over 4,000 women, according to health authorities in the enclave.

The official Israeli death toll stands at 1,200.

A Qatari-mediated four-day humanitarian pause took effect Friday that temporarily halted an Israeli onslaught against Gaza, with reports of two additional days to be added.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar