Dutch foreign minister resigns amid Gaza sanctions dispute

The Dutch government is facing a fresh political crisis after Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp resigned on Friday, unable to secure cabinet agreement on new sanctions against Israel over the Gaza war. The resignation comes amid a broader pattern of domestic pressure over the Netherlands’ response to Israel’s offensive in Gaza, ongoing international debate about possible punitive steps, and a caretaker government still navigating a fragile parliamentary balance ahead of October elections.

Veldkamp said he was unable to obtain the necessary backing for additional measures and that he could not “implement policy myself and chart the course I deem necessary.” He had proposed steps such as banning entry for far-right Israeli ministers and revoking certain export permits, moves that had previously drawn strong reactions from Israel’s political leadership and from European partners. In the days leading to his departure, a cabinet debate on further measures to increase pressure on Israel stalled, leaving him with no clear path forward.

The decision follows a long-running wave of domestic demonstrations in The Hague that drew an estimated 100,000 to 150,000 people, the largest in two...