The Dutch government has reacted strongly, calling Israeli atrocities in Gaza “unbearable and indefensible.”
The Netherlands has announced that it will summon the Israeli ambassador and ban two extremist Israeli ministers from entering the country.
According to Reuters, the Dutch government issued a letter on Monday night clearly stating that it will register its protest over the grave situation in Gaza.
The government has banned Ministers Itmar Ben-Gweir and Bezalel Smotrich on charges of incitement against Palestinians, support for illegal settlements and advocacy of ethnic cleansing in Gaza.
Dutch Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp told parliament that the two ministers had repeatedly incited settler violence and openly supported genocide in Gaza.
In June, the Netherlands supported a Swedish proposal calling on the EU to impose sanctions on the ministers, but the proposal failed to pass due to a lack of consensus among all member states.
Israeli ministers defended their stance in response. Smotrich accused European leaders on social media of bowing to “radical Islam,” while Ben-Gwer said he would continue to work for Israel even if the whole of Europe stopped him.
The Dutch government has also backed the EU’s call to limit Israeli research funding and warned that it would push for trade sanctions if Israel violated the aid agreement.
