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The Dutch government has decided to ban Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir from entering its territory, and to summon the Israeli ambassador to the Foreign Ministry – over the situation in the Gaza Strip. According to local media reports, the two ministers were defined as persona non grata in the country.
Dutch Foreign Minister Kaspar Veldkamp said in a letter to Parliament that Ben-Gvir and Smotrich have repeatedly contributed to inciting violence against Palestinians, advocated for an expansion of West Bank settlements and called for "ethnic cleansing" in Gaza.
In an emergency session of lawmakers with the participation of Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof and Defense Minister Ruben Brekelmans, a decision was made to transfer 1.5 million euros to the UN and 3 million euros to the Red Cross for aid to the Strip.
Schoof said his country would support removing Israel from the EU's Horizon Europe 2000 program, the flagship scientific research funding initiative
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In a post, he said civilians in Gaza must have immediate, unrestricted and safe access to humanitarian aid and that if the EU decides that Israel has not complied with relevant agreements, his government would support Israel's suspension and call for further measures to be taken, such as in trade.