''Israel has the right to live in peace in its recognized borders,'' EU Council President Herman Van Rompuy and EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said in a joint statement which while condemning continued rocket fire over Israel as an ''unacceptable threat to its citizens,'' also says legitimate defence needs to maintain proportionality.
‘’Gaza has been suffering from intolerable violence for more than three weeks already. We deplore the terrible loss of lives, including innocent women and children. Many have been injured, property and livelihoods have been destroyed. This needs to stop,’’ the EU leaders said Sunday.
‘’We have all seen these cycles in the past and we know that there are limits regarding what military operations can achieve. Only a negotiated solution, based on two states, living side by side and respectful of each other, will bring lasting peace. The bloodshed needs to stop,’’ the statement added.
Van Rompuy and Barroso said they join their voice to those of UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and other international leaders that are calling on both sides to put an end to hostilities.
‘’We are ready to support actively negotiations, confidence building measures, reconstruction and reconciliation efforts. No more lives should be wasted. Palestinian and Israeli leaders need to exercise courage by putting an end to this senseless violence. They also need to exercise courage and wisdom to move beyond these cycles of violence and advance towards arrangements that will ensure peaceful and dignified coexistence, based on mutual respect.’’
Some IDF forces have begun pulling back to near Israel's border with the Gaza Strip after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu issued a new warning to Hamas Saturday and promised that Israel would fight "as long as it will take" to prevent further rocket attacks against Israeli civilians.