Assenede (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – Assenede’s council, led by Mayor Trees Van Eykeren and majority group Lokaal Sterk!, will hold an urgent online meeting to address Gaza’s crisis and send a statement to higher governments.
As VRT News reported, Assenede, in the province of East Flanders, Belgium, will hold an urgent council meeting to discuss the worsening crisis in Gaza. The next regular meeting is set for September 2025, but local leaders say the situation can’t wait.
The ruling group, Lokaal Sterk!, made up of CD&V and Open VLD members, has a strong majority after the 2024 elections. They referred to recent UN and human rights reports that describe severe hunger, famine, and possible ethnic cleansing in Gaza. The council wants to respond quickly to these serious concerns instead of waiting months.
“We quickly found the two-thirds majority needed to convene an additional municipal council. And we also invoked the urgency. Given the situation in Gaza, we naturally needed a few arguments for that,”
says Mayor Trees Van Eykeren.
Why is Assenede’s council holding an urgent meeting on the Gaza crisis?
According to officials, even though dealing with foreign conflicts is usually not a local government’s job, Assenede’s council feels a strong duty to speak out about the crisis. Many residents are worried or moved by what is happening in Gaza, so the council wants to share their concerns.
“Of course, as a small community, we can’t stop wars, but we can send a message when our moral values are violated. And that’s precisely what’s happening in Gaza.”
Mayor Trees Van Eykeren (Locally Strong!)
Assenede’s city council will hold a special online meeting to talk about the growing crisis in Gaza. During this meeting, the majority group will share a formal statement about the situation. Mayor Van Eykeren said the statement can be changed and added to during the discussion. After the meeting, the final version will be sent to both the Flemish and federal governments.
“Here in Assenede, too, the conflict is alive and well, and citizens are concerned,
says Van Evkeren.
They sympathise with what’s happening in Gaza, and they’re also asking me what the municipality can do in this conflict. We’ve received a clear message from our residents, and we’re now taking action.”
Mayor Van Eykeren stated the town government can’t prevent wars or control world leaders, but what it can do is send a strong message based on common values. She stated that these values are being violated in Gaza, and that is the reason the town believes it needs to speak out.
During the war in Syria, many local councils in Europe held meetings and made statements to support refugees. In Belgium, some cities spoke out about the war in Ukraine and conflicts in the Middle East. These local governments want to raise awareness and push higher authorities to act. Even though dealing with foreign issues is not their main job, they use their voice to stand with people affected by war and crisis. Assenede is following this same path.
