The EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas has said she will address the EU’s finding that Israel is in breach of the human rights obligations enshrined in the EU-Israel Association Agreement with the Israeli authorities.
Following what she described as an intense discussion among 27 EU foreign ministers, Ms Kallas said the objective of the review into Israel’s compliance with Article 2 of the agreement, and the pressure it might bring to bear on the Israelis, was to improve the humanitarian situation on the ground in Gaza.
She said the review was "the beginning of the debate and not the end," but if the situation did not improve, the EU could "discuss further measures."
She told reporters: "We will contact Israel to present our findings and look how we can improve the situation on the ground, because that is the focus of the member states."
During a news conference, Ms Kallas said one of the measures could include a review of goods being traded from illegal Israeli settlements in the West Bank.
"This is one of the measures that could be taken when it comes to the [EU-Israel] Association Agreement," she said.
She said: "The review is very clear, and we have to improve the situation.
"Israel has been breaching Article 2. The review is not intended to punish Israel, but to trigger concrete improvements for the… lives of people in Gaza."
US attack on Iran 'unhelpful' - Tánaiste
Meanwhile, Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Harris has described the US attack on Iran's nuclear facilities as "a very unhelpful intervention."
He told reporters in Brussels: "There are international laws that say you shouldn't [attack nuclear installations].
"I'm also very clear…that actually the actions of the United States added a significant level of danger to an already volatile situation. So it was a very unhelpful intervention."
He added: "The reality is this: the only way I believe to make progress in relation to this, to stop an already tinderbox type situation getting even worse, is to get back to a negotiated situation.
"What has happened has happened. It has added a huge layer of extra volatility and danger."
Mr Harris said the EU-Israel Association Agreement should be suspended in full, following last week’s review which concluded that Israel was in breach of its human rights and international humanitarian law clauses.
However, he acknowledged that there was no consensus for such a move by EU foreign ministers.
"I want to see the European Union, in the first instance, recognise that a review has now taken place, that the review is clear in its findings, and then I want the [European] Commission to get on with the job of coming back to ministers or leaders in relation to proposals for action to be taken.
"If you have an agreement, and the agreement has human rights obligations, if the people you have the agreement with breach those obligations, there have to be consequences.
"If not, what is the point of having the human rights obligations in the agreement?
"This is about the credibility of the European Union when it does agreements. It's about saying to our citizens, our words matter. It's about saying to our citizens that when we enter agreements and put the human rights clauses in, it's not for padding. They're not discretionary, they're not nice to have. They're compulsory."
He said the objective of any steps against Israel were not about punishment, but about trying to change behaviour, "trying to use every lever at our disposal to end the genocidal activity that we're seeing in Gaza."
Earlier, Spanish Foreign Minister José Manuel Albares called for the immediate suspension of the Association Agreement and an embargo on weapons sales to Israel.
Arriving at the meeting of EU foreign ministers, he said: "Every day, babies, women, men are being killed. This is the time for action, and if the Association Agreement is based on human rights, it's the most normal thing that we suspend immediately today.
"Today is the day to acknowledge what we all knew since many months ago: there are violations of human rights. But today is, above all, a day for action. Anything else would be a failure for the European Union."
Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldcamp, whose initial proposal prompted the review, told RTÉ News that he would not rule out concrete actions against Israel.
"It’s most important that we stand in unity as the European Union. Under the current circumstances, when all the focus is on Iran and the escalation regarding Iran, we should not forget about Gaza and the terrible war that's taking place there and the terrible humanitarian situation."
He said a priority was to secure a ceasefire in Gaza which in turn would lead to a greater distribution of humanitarian aid
"The lifting of the humanitarian blockade is important. Those are my goals and the Article 2 review is an instrument, because we are very, very concerned about the situation in the Gaza Strip."
