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Newspaper post WWW.MALTATODAY.COM.MT WEDNESDAY EDITION WEDNESDAY • 23 JULY 2014 • ISSUE 374 • PUBLISHED EVERY WEDNESDAY AND SUNDAY Editorial - PAGE 9 €0.90 JURGEN BALZAN FOREIGN Affairs Minister George Vella called for an end to what he de- scribed as "carnage" in Gaza. He expressed deep concern at the ongoing violence and the mount- ing death toll "that overwhelmingly includes innocent Palestinian civil- ians". Since the Israeli siege on the Gaza strip started last week, at least 607 Palestinians and 29 Israelis have been killed. While condemning the rocket at- tacks from Gaza targeting Israel he called on Israel to ensure that its military response be proportionate and called on both sides to "agree immediately on a ceasefire and stop the carnage." Vella insisted that the escalation in Gaza is not the main issue, but the symptom of the wider situation, with the current pause in the peace proc- ess and no prospect that a negotiated settlement between the Israelis and the Palestinians will happen any time soon. "Any hope remaining is being ex- tinguished by the ongoing occupa- tion of Palestinian Territory, the blockade of Gaza and daily violations of the basic rights of the Palestinian people," he said. Vella was speaking at the Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels where EU Ministers met to discuss two is- sues which are currently dominat- ing the international headlines: the ongoing conflict in Ukraine in light of the downing of the Malaysian air- liner, and the continuing hostilities in Gaza and Israel. The deteriorating situation in Iraq was also discussed. The minister added that the inter- national community must address not only the need for a ceasefire in Gaza but also a resumption of a more comprehensive political process. In this regard the minister wel- comed the adoption of the Council Conclusions in which for the first time the EU set out a full set of parameters which it believes will define the basis for a successful outcome of negotiations once these resume. Vella also raised the situation in Libya and stressed the importance that the EU remains vigilant about the ongoing deterioration of secu- rity, with ramifications for the im- mediate region. In the afternoon the minister at- tended the Eastern Partnership Min- isterial Meeting which discussed the EU's relations with its Eastern partners as well as the ongoing po- litical situation in the region and the impact of the Ukrainian crisis. Vella urged Russia to commit to- wards stabilisation in east Ukraine, an end to the carnage in Gaza and a resumption of the political process in the Middle East. He joined colleagues in expressing condolences to the Netherlands and other Member States that lost citi- zens in the tragedy and condemned those responsible for bringing down the airliner. Vella also called on Russia to be more cooperative and commit to- wards contributing to the stabilisa- tion of Eastern Ukraine, starting with an immediate ceasefire. Ministers agreed to undertake work in preparation for the adoption of further targeted measures should Russia fail to stop the increasing flow of weapons, equipment and mili- tants across the border and achieve rapid and tangible results towards de-escalation. Malta calls for end to Gaza carnage A conflagration on Malta's doorstep, but what are we doing about it, JURGEN BALZAN asks – Pages 6,7 Libya: where is our plan B?