Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
Dr. Mohammad Mustafa, the Palestinian Prime Minister, will visit the European Commission headquarters in Brussels to hold talks with a number of members of the European Union executive on Thursday and Friday. According to what was announced on the Commission’s official website, Ms. Dubravka Suica, in charge of the Mediterranean file, will receive Mr. Mohammad Mustafa, the Palestinian Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, next Thursday.

On the same day, Ms. Hajja Lahbib, in charge of the preparedness and crisis management file, will receive Dr. Mohammad Mustafa, the Palestinian Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs.
As for Friday, January 17, 2025, the European Union’s Foreign and Security Policy Coordinator and Vice-President of the Commission, Ms. Kaya Kallas, will receive Mr. Mohammad Mustafa, the Palestinian Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs, in her office in Brussels.
The announcement of the visit comes after the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs said that the Israeli authorities continue to reject UN-led efforts to reach the northern Gaza Strip with vital aid, including an attempt by the organization today.
The UN spokesman, Stéphane Dujarric, said the office was deeply concerned about the impact of the fuel shortage on essential services in Gaza. Palestinian telecommunications companies are warning that their services could start to stop tomorrow due to a lack of fuel, which they need to run their generators.
The World Health Organization said today that Al Awda Hospital – the last partially functioning hospital in the northern Gaza governorate – is suffering from a severe shortage of fuel and essential medical supplies. WHO is working to reach the hospital to resupply it and assess the situation at Kamal Adwan Hospital, which is completely out of service.
But damaged roads – as well as inadequate access by the Israeli authorities – have made it impossible to reach those facilities safely. WHO urgently calls for immediate action to make the roads passable and facilitate access to the hospital to keep it functioning.
In the West Bank, recent reports from the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs have painted a picture of extreme violence. In the first week of this year, Israeli forces killed three Palestinians, including a child, and injured 38 others across the West Bank, including East Jerusalem. Meanwhile, Palestinian gunmen shot and killed three Israeli settlers and injured eight others near Qalqilya. The office said that during the first week of the year, Israeli settlers injured 18 Palestinians across the West Bank, including nine in the Ramallah governorate. Meanwhile, more than 50 Palestinians were displaced in the West Bank due to home demolitions, the majority in Silwan in East Jerusalem.