Irish minister slams 'inhumane' Gaza conditions, hopeful of talks

"I am in no doubt that this is a very inhumane and unacceptable blockade and siege, very counter-productive to a peace process," Martin told reporters on the sidelines of meeting with his EU counterparts in Cordoba, Spain.

He said that while in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip last week he witnessed "too much malnutrition, abject poverty" and noticed very poor drinking water.

Meanwhile legitimate businesses were being squeezed out, with the outlawed Hamas making money by smuggling goods in.

However Martin, the first European foreign minister to enter the Gaza Strip for over a year, said there was a "good prospect of proximity talks" involving Palestinian Authority officials and Israeli leaders.

Such talks take place with the officials from the opposing sides in the same building but not face to face, with an intermediary such as the US shuttling between them.

"I know George Mitchell has been working hard and has put forward the idea of proximity talks," Martin said ahead of talks on the subject among the EU ministers, referring to the US special envoy to the Middle East.

He said that "European officials should seek to make "many more visits" to the Gaza Strip, to see the problems first hand.

Martin himself entered via Egypt for a three-day fact-finding mission.

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