Five European member states have lodged a complaint to express their disapproval of Israel's government recent decision to appropriate land near the Gush Etzion bloc.
Israel announced the move two weeks ago, the army saying the step stemmed from political decisions taken after the June killing of three Israeli teenagers snatched from a roadside in Gush Etzion, south of Jerusalem.
The ambassadors of Britain, France, Italy, and Spain, and the deputy ambassador of Germany submitted a joint official protest to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office, according to Israel’s daily Haaretz.
The European envoys delivered their written protest to Israel National Security Adviser Yossi Cohen during a meeting at the Prime Minister’s Office and said that Israel's controversial decision had greatly angered the countries of the European Union.
The ambassadors said that the decision ‘’came at a very bad time’’ and they expressed hope that it would be reversed.
In response, Israel's National Security adviser was quoted as saying that there is strong political pressure within the government to increase settlement building and that it was unlikely the government would accede to international pressure and reverse the decision.
On Wednesday, speaking at a press briefing in Jerusalem, the EU ambassador to Israel, Lars Faaborg-Andersen, said ‘’we are very concerned about the move in Gush Etzion,” “I delivered the message to Deputy Foreign Minister Tzachi Hanegbi on Monday that this is an alarming development because of the timing.” He urged Israel to reverse the decision but stressed the European Union is not considering anti-Israel sanctions over the issue. . Even if Israel refuses to reverse it, ‘’anti-Israeli sanctions aren't on the agenda now," he said.
He also said he is concerned fighting will resume in the Gaza Strip if negotiations for a long-term cease-fire between Israel and Hamas do not begin to show progress.
"If the situation in Gaza goes unaddressed there is a big potential for violence to resume. We must not return to the status quo," he said.
Faaborg-Anderson added that he had been informed that Egypt was planning to send invitations to Israel and the Palestinian factions in the coming days to return to Cairo and continue talks on a long-term ceasefire. On August 25 Israel and Hamas agreed an open-ended truce.
According to Faaborg-Andersen, any agreement would have to ensure the rehabilitation of the Gaza Strip while simultaneously meeting Israel's security needs.
"There is a need to go back to the Cairo talks as soon as possible. We need to see a return of the Palestinian Authority to Gaza in order to lead the reconstruction efforts. We don't want to go back to instability within a few months," he said.