Tajani calls for de-escalation, end to rocket fire

(ANSA) - ROME, OCT 23 - There needs to be a de-escalation in the Israel-Gaza conflict with an end to the firing of rockets by militant groups Hamas and Hezbollah, Foreign Minister and Deputy Premier Antonio Tajani said on Monday.
    "Hamas cannot be allowed to do what it wants," said Tajani on arriving at a two-day meeting of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg. The foreign minister also reiterated that Israel "has the right to defend itself" but that this must be "in a proportionate way, without indiscriminately hitting the civilian population in Gaza".
    Tajani said the risk of the conflict spreading beyond Israel and Gaza "is there" and that efforts are underway to ensure that "this does not become a reality".
    "All of us, the US and the EU, are working on the diplomatic path and Italy has taken a leading role," he added.
    "The goal is to avoid the Middle East burning," said Tajani.
    (ANSA).