The Netherlands has declared Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir and Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich persona non grata, banning them from entering the country and the wider Schengen area.
Dutch Foreign Minister Kaspar Veldkamp announced the decision on July 27, citing the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza and the ministers’ repeated incitement of violence against Palestinians.
In his letter, Veldkamp stated that the Dutch government has registered the two far-right ministers in the Schengen Information System (SIS) as “undesirable foreigners.” He stressed that both officials have “repeatedly encouraged settler violence, advocated the expansion of illegal settlements, and called for ethnic cleansing in Gaza.”
The Netherlands also reaffirmed its commitment to ease suffering in Gaza, saying air-dropping aid is costly and risky but more land-based humanitarian assistance will be supported.
Earlier in June, the Netherlands backed Sweden’s proposal in the EU Foreign Affairs Council to sanction the two Israeli ministers — a plan that did not gain unanimous EU backing.
Israeli Response:
After the announcement, Ben-Gvir posted on X (formerly Twitter) accusing the Netherlands of hypocrisy: “Where terrorism is tolerated and terrorists are welcomed, a Jewish Israeli minister is declared unwelcome — terrorists roam free while Jews are boycotted.”
Smotrich claimed growing antisemitism and “European surrender to radical Islam’s lies” mean that Jews can no longer live safely in Europe.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian crisis in Gaza remains dire: UN bodies warn that extreme hunger has doubled in recent months among the 2.4 million Palestinians under Israeli siege since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023.
Veldkamp added that if Israel fails to meet its humanitarian obligations, the Netherlands will push to suspend the trade section of the EU-Israel Association Agreement, to remind Israel of its responsibilities under international humanitarian law, calling the current situation “unbearable and indefensible.”
