The "transatlantic statement", a copy of which was passed to the BBC, says their administrations risk being complicit in "one of the worst human catastrophes of this century" but that their expert advice has been sidelined.
It is the latest sign of significant levels of dissent within the governments of some of Israel's key Western allies.
One signatory to the statement, a US government official with more than 25 years' national security experience, told the BBC of the "continued dismissal" of their concerns.
The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said:
"The voices of those who understand the region and the dynamics were not listened to. What's really different here is we're not failing to prevent something, we're actively complicit. That is fundamentally different from any other situation I can recall."The statement is signed by civil servants from the US, the EU and 11 European countries including the UK, France and Germany. It says:
"Israel has shown 'no boundaries' in its military operations in Gaza, which has resulted in tens of thousands of preventable civilian deaths; and... the deliberate blocking of aid... putting thousands of civilians at risk of starvation and slow death. There is a plausible risk that our governments' policies are contributing to grave violations of international law, war crimes and even ethnic cleansing or genocide."The identities of those who signed or endorsed the statement have not been made public and the BBC has not seen a list of names, but understands that nearly half are officials who each have at least a decade of experience in government.













Comment: This all sounds very sketchy and is reminiscent of the recent tunnel scandal involving the Orthodox Jewish community which has mysteriously disappeared from the news cycle. See also:
NY Times had this to say: