Israel has the right to defend itself, but its current actions go beyond proportionate self-defense, Kaja Kallas, the European Union’s top diplomat, told reporters Monday.

Earlier, Kallas said Europe was stepping up its support for the Palestinians, with a plan to provide €1.6 billion ($1.8 billion) until 2027 to “help stabilize the West Bank and Gaza.”

The fresh aid pledge came just ahead of a meeting between Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa and EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg.

“The EU will invest in essential infrastructure while delivering humanitarian aid and support for refugees,” she said on X.

The EU is looking to boost the PA, as Israel has resumed its war against Hamas in Gaza after a ceasefire-hostage release deal largely put a halt to the fighting for two months.

“This will reinforce the PA’s ability to meet the needs of the Palestinian people in the West Bank and prepare it to return to govern Gaza once conditions allow,” Kallas said.

Brussels — the biggest international donor to the Palestinians — said the package would include 620 million euros in grants for the PA.

The funds will be linked to reforms on “fiscal sustainability, democratic governance, private sector development, and public infrastructure and services,” the EU said.

The rest will be made up of 576 million euros in grants for projects aimed at helping economic recovery in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

A further 400 million euros in loans would come from the bloc’s lending arm, the European Investment Bank.

The EU’s new package follows on from the previous three-year support plan worth 1.36 billion euros from 2021........

© The Times of Israel