Statement by President von der Leyen on the agreement between Israel and Hamas on an extension of the pause in hostilities

I welcome the agreement reached on the extension of 2 days of the pause in hostilities between Israel and Hamas. I once again call on the Hamas terrorists to release all hostages taken during their horrific attack of October 7^th.

In the past four days, it has been heart-warming to see the first Israeli hostages freed, along with hostages of other nationalities. I also welcome the substantial increase in the delivery of humanitarian aid to the Palestinians civilians in Gaza made possible by this pause in the hostilities.

The agreement reached today extends this window of hope, allowing more civilians in Gaza to have access to essential aid.

As of today, the European Commission has organised an air bridge, with 20 flights completed bringing almost 900 tonnes of much needed humanitarian supplies to Gaza via Egypt. And additional 4 flights are already planned for this week.

I thank all parties involved in securing this critical new agreement. In particular, I would like to thank the authorities of Qatar, Egypt and the US for their tireless diplomatic efforts in reaching this deal.  The European Union will continue to stay in close contacts with all international partners to work on achieving a political solution that ensures peaceful coexistence between Israelis and Palestinians, based on the two-state solution.