World reaction to surprise attack by Palestinian Hamas on Israel

Israel-Hamas war to only have limited impact on energy costs, says European Central Bank official Isabel Schnabel, a European Central Bank board member, says that the body’s analysis doesn’t show any major impact from the conflict. “Our preliminary analysis at this point shows that given that Israel in the end is relatively small, as long as the conflict remains contained, the impact on energy prices should be relatively limited,” Schnabel said. “If, of course, the conflict widened – in particular, if Iran was involved – the situation could change quickly,” she added.

Arab League chief Ahmed Aboul Gheit urged “an immediate halt to military operations in Gaza” and “the cycle of armed confrontation between the two sides”. “Israel’s continued implementation of violent and extremist policies is a time bomb depriving the region of any serious opportunity for stability in the foreseeable future.”

UN Security Council chair Brazil announced it will call an emergency meeting of the body to address the escalating violence and it urged restraint. “The Brazilian government condemns the series of bombings and ground attacks carried out today in Israel starting from the Gaza Strip,” Brazil’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement, urging parties to “avoid escalating the situation”.

Belgium “Belgium strongly condemns the massive rocket attacks against Israeli civilians. Violence and terror only perpetuates suffering and hinders the path to dialogue. Our thoughts are with all those affected. We are monitoring the situation closely,” Foreign Affairs Minister Hadja Lahbib wrote on social media platform X, formerly known as Twitter.

Czech Republic “The attack conducted from the Gaza Strip is a deplorable act of terrorism against the State of Israel and the civilian population,” President Petr Pavel said in a statement. “The rocket attacks and the infiltration of Hamas commandos into Israel will block any efforts for a peaceful solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict for a long time.”