The Belgian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Hadja Lahbib, summoned the Israeli ambassador to Belgium on Friday February 2 to ask for explanations and express “strong condemnation” of the destruction, by the Israeli army, on Wednesday January 31, of the offices of Enabel, a Belgian development agency based in Gaza.
The offices, evacuated in time by staff, were spread over two levels in a six-story building in the north of the Gaza Strip. The building also housed the offices of the NGO Handicap international.
“The destruction of civilian infrastructure is absolutely unacceptable and does not comply with international law”, indicated the Belgian ministry, calling for an immediate ceasefire from all parties and the resumption of negotiations with a view to a two-state solution. The government also says it wants to consult its European partners with a view to obtaining compensation for infrastructure damaged by Israel and financed by the European Union and its member countries.
Israeli Ambassador Idit Rosenzweig-Abu said her government was investigating whether Enabel’s offices had been struck by her country’s army. “As soon as we have this information, we will share it [avec les autorités belges] »she assured.
“Just one step too far”
The Belgian Minister of Cooperation, Caroline Gennez, a Flemish socialist who had quickly advocated the adoption of sanctions against Israel when the war broke out on October 7, 2023, spoke of what is, according to her, “just one step too far” from the Israeli army. While saying he was unable to determine whether the destruction of Enabel’s infrastructure was intentional or not. Images of the bombing would not allow us to decide whether the building was deliberately targeted, or destroyed after a firing error.
In any case, the Israeli authorities could not ignore that the building housed the Belgian agency, active since 1997 and responsible in particular for improving school infrastructure and helping with the creation of businesses. Enabel collaborated with the official Israeli agency responsible for coordinating activities in the Palestinian territories.
Since the outbreak of the conflict, relations between Belgium and Israel have been very tense. Mme Rosenzweig-Abu sparked a first controversy with the Brussels authorities in November 2023 when she criticized the Flemish newspaper De Morgen, which published a photomontage showing freed Israeli hostages and Palestinian prisoners side by side. The daily headlined: “Israeli or Palestinian, it’s always someone’s father or child. »
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