As her country currently holds the EU presidency, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said on Saturday that Israeli leader Benjamin Netanyahu has turned into a "problem" and that she will attempt to exert pressure on Israel regarding the Gaza war.
"Netanyahu is now a problem in himself," Frederiksen said in an interview with the Jyllands-Posten daily, adding that the Israeli government was going "too far."
The centre right leader slammed the "absolutely appalling and catastrophic" humanitarian situation in Gaza and new settlement project in the occupied West Bank.
"We are one of the countries that wants to increase pressure on Israel, but we have not yet obtained the support of EU members," she said.
Frederiksen added that she wanted to consider "political pressure, sanctions, whether against settlers, ministers, or even Israel as a whole," referring to trade or research sanctions.
"We are not ruling anything out in advance. Just as with Russia, we are designing the sanctions to target where we believe they will have the greatest effect," added Frederiksen, whose country is not among those who have said they will recognize the Palestinian state.
Israel has killed nearly 61,900 Palestinians in Gaza since October 2023 in relation to a Hamas attack. The military campaign has devastated the enclave and brought it to the verge of famine.
Last November, the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
