EU staff voice concern over union’s Gaza response

Over 200 employees of the EU's institutions and agencies have signed a letter expressing deep concerns regarding the union's handling of the humanitarian crisis in the war-torn Gaza Strip.

The letter is set to be delivered to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Parliament President Roberta Metsola and EU Council President Charles Michel on May 24, according to the Guardian, which saw the document exclusively.

The letter warned that that the EU's "continued apathy to the plight of Palestinians" risks legitimizing a world order where the use of force, rather than adherence to a rule-based system, dictates state security, territorial integrity and political independence.

This contradicts the union's fundamental values and its mission to promote peace, 211 staff members said in the letter.

"It was precisely to avert such a grim world order that our grandparents, witnesses of the horrors of World War II, created Europe," the letter read.

"To stand idly by in the face of such an erosion of the international rule of law would mean failing the European project as envisaged by them. This cannot happen in our name."

The signatories, promised confidentiality, were not named in the public version of the letter. It called on the EU to officially demand an immediate and lasting ceasefire, along with other requests such as advocating for the release of all hostages and halting member states' arms exports to Israel, both directly and indirectly.

This letter follows a demonstration by over 100 EU employees in Brussels protesting Israel's actions in Gaza, emphasizing the importance of "upholding the rights, principles and values upon which European institutions are founded."

Meanwhile, European Union...