Europeans Condemn Israeli Minister's Remarks on Starving Gaza Residents

The remarks by Israel's Finance Minister suggesting that starving two million residents of Gaza could be a "justifiable and moral" act have faced condemnation from the European Union and Britain. Simultaneously, the U.S. has urged Israel to investigate allegations of sexual assault against a Palestinian prisoner from Hamas. The U.S. and the EU classify the extremist group Hamas as a terrorist organization. Bezalel Smotrich, the Finance Minister and leader of a far-right party in Israel's governing coalition, stated on Monday that the country has "no choice" but to transfer humanitarian aid to Gaza, as it needs international legitimacy in this war, and no one in the world would allow two million people in Gaza to be starved, "even if [this act] is justified and moral for the freedom of hostages." The EU on Wednesday, August 8, reminded that deliberately starving civilians is classified as a "war crime," and called on the Israeli government to disavow the minister's statements. British Foreign Secretary David Lammy also urged the Israeli government to condemn the minister's remarks. The French government criticized Smotrich, emphasizing that Israel controls all access routes to the Gaza Strip and is obligated under international humanitarian law to provide humanitarian assistance to Gaza residents. Concurrently, on Wednesday, the U.S. State Department called for a "full investigation" into allegations of "sexual abuse" of a Palestinian prisoner. Matthew Miller, a spokesperson for the State Department in Washington, referred to a video broadcast on Israel's Channel 12, which raised suspicions that prison guards were assaulting a Palestinian prisoner out of sight of prison surveillance cameras. According to reports from prison organizations and Israeli media, the Palestinian prisoner was a member of Hamas's "elite" unit involved in the attack on Israel on October 7 last year. He is one of several thousand Hamas members that Israel has detained and transferred to its prisons. The White House described reports of sexual assault and torture of this Palestinian prisoner as a source of "deep concern." Two weeks ago, the Israeli army went to the "Sede Tzafon" prison to arrest nine guards accused of involvement in the assault, but several Israelis and some parliament members rushed to the military compound to prevent the arrest of these guards. However, after the situation calmed in the "Sede Tzafon" detention center and the attackers left the area, the suspects were arrested, and five were brought to trial. On Wednesday, August 8, coinciding with the start of the trial of these suspects, several right-wing party activists stormed the courthouse and shouted slogans. These activists insist that while Israel is at war, the judicial and security institutions should not waste their time on "terrorists who have participated in attacks against Israel." The military prosecutor of the Israeli army, an independent legal entity, has faced severe criticism from right-wing Israeli activists for issuing a permit to investigate the suspected guards. The Guardian reported this week, based on interviews with released Palestinian prisoners, that starving and abusing prisoners has become a common practice in all Israeli prisons. In response to this report and similar ones, the Israeli army emphasized that it operates according to the law and has investigated every specific claim regarding violations of laws. Several members of the Israeli parliament condemned the leak of the video of the assault on the mentioned prisoner on Wednesday. Bezalel Smotrich stated that an immediate investigation should be conducted to find out who leaked this video to the Israeli media, as this video has caused significant damage to Israel on the international stage.