EU calls on Israel to open additional crossings so more aid can reach Gaza

Aid ship sails from Cyprus to Gaza as residents of the Gaza Strip are on the brink of famine

(Fixes name of UAE Foreign Min and adds "Qatari" in paragraph 3)

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The EU on Wednesday called on Israel to open additional crossings besides the Cyprus maritime corridor so that more aid can reach Gaza.

"While supporting the Cyprus maritime corridor, we call on Israel to open additional crossings so more aid can reach Gaza, including the North, and to ease overall customs restrictions", EU Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarcic said on social media platform X.

The statement came after Lenarcic virtually met with Cypriot Foreign Affairs Minister Constantinos Kombos, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken, British Foreign Minister David Cameron, UAE Foreign Affairs Minister Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Qatari Foreign Affairs Minister Abdulrahman Al Thani and U.N. Humanitarian and Reconstruction Coordinator for Gaza Sigrid Kaag.

(This story has been corrected to fix the name of the UAE foreign affairs minister and to add the word 'Qatari' in paragraph 3)

(Reporting by Charlotte Van Campenhout)