EU blasts Israeli attacks on Gaza

"Israel has the right to protect its citizens from terrorist attacks but ... the exercise of this right should take place within the boundaries of international law," Dutch Foreign Minister Bernard Bot said in a statement in Amsterdam on Friday.

Bot condemned a rocket attack by Palestinian resistance group Hamas which killed two Israeli children in the border town of Sderot on Wednesday and called on the Palestinian authority to clamp down on those behind such actions.

But he also called Israel's subsequent military retaliation in Gaza "disproportionate", noting it had also led to the deaths of civilians, including children, and left many injured.

Bot's statement came as Israeli Apache helicopters were reported to have struck a 'refrigerator' factory in Gaza City.

'Complicates peace' efforts

"Bot urged Israel and the Palestinians to consider the longer-term consequences of their actions, which merely inflame the situation and give rejectionist forces a pretext to derail the quest for a peaceful settlement," the Dutch statement said.

EU member Spain also expressed concern at the escalating violence in the Gaza Strip after the upsurge in the number of civilian deaths.

"The Spanish government wishes to express its deep concern over the recent events in Gaza which have had their consequence such loss of life," a foreign ministry statement said.

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