The top diplomat of the European Union called for a roadmap to reach a cease-fire and the release of hostages following the announcement of U.S. President Joe Biden on Friday.
"All our support to @POTUS Biden roadmap to an enduring cease-fire and the release of hostages leading to a permanent cessation of hostilities, withdrawal of IDF and reconstruction efforts to commence,” High Representative of the EU for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Borrell said on X.
"The war has to end now,” he stressed in the post.
Biden had earlier said Israel presented Palestinian group Hamas with a three-phase deal that would end all hostilities in the besieged Gaza Strip and secure the release of hostages that continue to be held in the coastal enclave.
The U.S. president appealed to Hamas to accept the deal and urged Israel’s Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, to stave off pressure from members of his governing coalition who are opposed to the plan.
More than 36,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza since Israel began its war nearly eight months ago, mostly women and children and over 82,000 others have been injured, according to local health authorities. The Hamas-led Oct. 7 attack killed less than 1,200 people.
Vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid Israel's crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which, in its latest ruling, has ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war.
