ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – The United Kingdom, France, Denmark, Greece, and Slovenia issued a joint statement on Sunday in which they condemned Israel’s announced expansion of military operations in Gaza and called for the groundwork for a two-state solution to be laid.

Israel recently announced plans for the military occupation of Gaza City and the central Gaza Strip’s Al Mawasi camps, with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday saying that the security cabinet has “instructed the [Israeli military] to dismantle the two remaining Hamas strongholds.”

"This is the best way to end the war and the best way to end it speedily,” Netanyahu continued. “We're talking in terms of a fairly short timetable because we want to bring the war to an end.”

“We condemn the Government of Israel’s decision to further expand its military operations in Gaza,” the European countries’ statement read, saying that “this plan risks violating international humanitarian law… and we reiterate that any attempts at annexation or of settlement extension violate international law.”

“This decision by the Israeli Government will do nothing to secure the return of the [Israeli] hostages and risks further endangering their lives. It will also worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza and risks further death and mass displacement of Palestinian civilians,” the joint statement continued.

“After 22 months of suffering in Gaza, now is the time for diplomacy, not more war,” Slovenian Ambassador to the UN Samuel Zbogar read from the statement at the UN’s headquarters in New York.

Long considered strong allies of Israel, France and the UK have stepped up criticism of Israel’s actions in Gaza in recent months, coming as the death toll in the Strip since October 2023 has surpassed 60,000 people, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

French President Emmanuel Macron in late July vowed to recognize the State of Palestine in the upcoming UN assembly in September, citing an “urgent need” for an end to the Gaza situation and a lack of alternatives.

Merely five days later, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that London would follow suit with recognition unless Israel takes “substantive steps” toward resolving the conflict and alleviating the humanitarian crisis in Gaza.

The joint statement also urged Israel to allow aid to enter the beleaguered Palestinian territory, saying, “We have a clear message for Israel: lift restrictions on aid delivery to allow the UN and established humanitarian partners to operate safely and at scale… After 22 months of suffering in Gaza, now is the time for diplomacy, not more war.”

The European countries also urged the Palestinian militant group Hamas, whose October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel precipitated the invasion of the Gaza Strip, to “disarm and play no future part in the governance of Gaza, where the Palestinian Authority must have a central role.”

“We call on both parties to secure an immediate and permanent ceasefire, the release of all the hostages, and to urgently advance efforts to achieve a two-state solution,” the statement concluded.

In a joint statement earlier in July, the foreign ministers of 30 countries, including the UK, called for an immediate end to the war in Gaza and condemned “the drip feeding of aid and the inhumane killing of civilians, including children.”