Italy, France and Germany call on EU to place sanctions against Hamas

Italy, France and Germany called on the European Union to impose ad hoc sanctions against Hamas and its supporters, the foreign ministers of the three nations wrote in a joint letter to the EU's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell.

"We express our full support for the ... proposal to create an ad hoc sanctions regime against Hamas and its supporters," said the letter seen by Reuters.

"The swift adoption of this sanctions regime will enable us to send a strong political message about the European Union's commitment against Hamas and our solidarity with Israel," the letter said.