EU leaders debated calling for “pauses” in Israel's war with Hamas to get aid into Gaza, as the bloc weighed how to respond to the conflict as fighting rages in Ukraine, AFP reports.

The European Union has struggled for both unity and influence in the face of the crisis that has engulfed the Middle East since Hamas launched its bloody attack on Israel on October 7.

After days of talks, a draft statement for the summit called for humanitarian “corridors and pauses” so aid can reach civilians in Gaza.

That declaration — which was still being negotiated — falls short of demands from the United Nations for a ceasefire.