Israel would be “better off” without its Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen has said, in an unusually direct rebuke from an EU head of government.
“Netanyahu is a problem in himself now,” Frederiksen told Danish daily Jyllands-Posten in an interview published Friday.
Such personal criticism of a national leader is rare in Brussels, reflecting the bind EU leaders find themselves in: They need to address the human cost of the war in Gaza — which has killed some 62,000 people according the health ministry in Gaza, which is under the Hamas-run government — while asserting Israel’s right to defend itself.
Since the Hamas terrorist attack of 7 October, 2023 and the Israeli invasion of Gaza that followed, European official criticism of Israel has been focused on policies such as settlement expansion, civilian protection, or the recognition of a Palestinian state. But Frederiksen’s words reflect a hardening of opinion in recent weeks.
Frederiksen’s criticism “reflects a great frustration with the current Israeli leadership” even among countries that have traditionally been friends of Israel, said James Moran, associate senior research fellow at the Centre for European Policy Studies and a former Middle East advisor at the EU External Action Service.
“They think it's very bad for Israel as much as anything else,” he told The Parliament.
Escalating rhetoric
European leaders have stepped up their criticism of Israel over the summer. In June, nine EU foreign ministers — from Belgium, Finland, Ireland, Luxembourg, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Spain and Sweden — urged the European Commission to explore ways of curbing trade with Israeli settlements in the occupied Palestinian territories. Later 31 countries, including 21 EU member states, issued a joint statement calling for an end to the war in Gaza.
Last month, France and Malta recognised a Palestinian state, with the UK, Canada and Australia following suit shortly after, prompting furious exchanges with Israel’s prime minister. Netanyahu said the French position was fuelling antisemitism in the country, an accusation French President Emmanual Macron labelled as “manipulation.”
Some in Europe doubt the effectiveness of such measures. In an emailed statement to The Parliament, the Danish foreign affairs ministry said it was “doubtful” that a “recognition of Palestine right now would have any real impact on the ground.”
Existing efforts have had little impact. An aid deal orchestrated by EU High Representative Kaja Kallas designed to allow more aid into Gaza has essentially collapsed, while journalists in Gaza continue to be killed. And just last week, Kallas said a plan for a new Israeli settlement was in breach of international law.
“As long as Austria, Germany, Czech Republic and Hungary are not moving from their position … then real decisions are not going to be made,” Koert Debeuf, a professor in Middle East Studies at Vrije Universiteit Brussel (VUB), told The Parliament.
The Danish foreign affairs ministry also acknowledged this difficulty: “As Presidency [of the Council of the EU], we will contribute to finding common ground for action. Some measures require EU unity, some require QMV [qualified majority vote] — so it is not an easy task.”
The EU’s limited leverage therefore continues to be a source of frustration. “European external relations have become ... so volatile and at the same time remain so supine,” Giles Merritt, senior associate fellow at the Egmont Institute, told The Parliament. “Reactive rather than proactive.”
Personality politics
Frederiksen’s decision to focus on Netanyahu personally does show a growing rhetorical rift between him and other Western leaders.
“Tempers are getting frayed,” said Merritt. “Frederiksen's remarks, I think, reflect the mood swing inside the EU: that Netanyahu's really rather unscrupulous self-interest has really tipped the balance on what European governments are prepared to put up with.”
Netanyahu’s governing coalition relies on the support of far-right parties, some of whose leaders want Israel to occupy all of Gaza and expand settlements in the West Bank. At the same time, Netanyahu is facing corruption charges related to a previous term of office; court proceedings have been delayed due to the war.
“The Israeli government is procrastinating,” said Moran, adding that it “wishes very much to continue the conflict … not necessarily in the interest of the State of Israel, but in its own interests.”
Netanyahu under pressure at home
These issues have piled pressure on Netanyahu at home as well as abroad. Around 500,000 people gathered in Tel Aviv over the weekend, demanding an end to the war and the release of hostages. Netanyahu criticised the demonstrators, saying they “harden Hamas’s position and draw out the release of our hostages.”
A survey by the Tel Aviv-based Institute for National Security Studies showed that only 30% of Israelis trust the prime minister, and just 23% trust the government. By contrast, public trust in the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), which is leading operations in Gaza, is at 77%. Some 80% of respondents viewed the IDF as a moral army.
“A lot of what is going on — in Gaza itself, the famine that is being created, the war that has been started against Iran, against Syria and so forth, has a lot to do with the position of the person, of Benjamin Netanyahu,” said Debeuf.
By focusing their criticism on Netanyahu rather than the IDF or Israel itself, Frederiksen and other EU leaders may be able to align themselves with liberal Israelis, many of whom have come to see the prime minister as a liability.
But it may not be enough to assuage public opinion in Europe, where protesters are calling for the EU and national leaders to break with Israel more broadly over its conduct of the war in Gaza.
“The initial thought was: it's really important, to hear leaders of EU member states critiquing Netanyahu and his policies,” said Eve Geddie, Amnesty International's Head of the European Institutions Office. “But making it just about Netanyahu, I think, falls short of ... the extent of the issues to hand.”
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