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Harsh words on the policy of deportations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem + Gaza (Update)

K. Georgieva and S. Fayyad, Palestinian PM in Ramallah, May 15 (credit: European Commission)

(BRUSSELS2) On a visit to the Palestinian territories, accompanied by her counterpart from the United Nations OCHA, Valerie Amos, the European Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid, Kristalina Georgieva, did not have words harsh enough on the policy of colonization, asserting itself particularly moved » the plight of ordinary Palestinian families encountered in Area C of the West Bank and in East Jerusalem.

Under the daily pressure of "harassment and expulsion"

« Women and children in particular live under the constant threat of harassment, expulsion and disruption of their lives. There is a protection issue here. Any action that leads to forced displacement must cease. This problem, combined with serious restrictions on access and movement imposed by the occupying power, means that most people are denied the possibility of economic and social development, are denied the right to live a life of dignity . (...) The legitimate right of the Israeli people to live in peace and security does not erase Israel's obligation as the occupying power to respect international humanitarian law. Respect for the right to a life with dignity must prevent outbreaks of violence, such as we have witnessed today throughout the occupied Palestinian territory, and help pave the way for peace. » According to the European Commission, around 60.000 Palestinians (out of a total of 225.000) in East Jerusalem face evictions.

The Commissioner has scheduled until 17 January a 4-day visit to the West Bank as well as to Gaza, Jerusalem and Tel-Aviv (Israel) with talks with the main Palestinian leaders - the President of the Palestinian Authority Abbas and his Prime Minister, Salam Fayyad, as well as the heads of the main humanitarian organizations working in the region (ICRC, Unicef, UNRWA...). It is a new visit to Gaza by a senior European official after that of the President of the European Parliament, Hans-Gert Pöttering, in February 2009, and of the High Representative of the EU, in July 2010. But the first since the announcement of the Hamas-Fatah rapprochement.

(Update May 17)

Gaza Strip blockade must be lifted, she tells defense minister

In Gaza, the commissioner continued in the same line. During a meeting with Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak on May 17, K. Georgieva called for a “ immediate, lasting and unconditional opening of crossings to the Gaza Strip highlighting the difficult humanitarian situation at the base in Gaza. " The blockade impedes the movement of people, the import and export of goods, resulting in frustration and undermining development - she explained -. It is very difficult, for example, to bring construction materials into the Gaza Strip, which are urgently needed to build houses and schools. Another example is the plight of fishermen, who are unable to go beyond the three-mile overfishing zone and therefore struggle to sustain their livelihoods. »

Nicolas Gros Verheyde

Chief editor of the B2 site. Graduated in European law from the University of Paris I Pantheon Sorbonne and listener to the 65th session of the IHEDN (Institut des Hautes Etudes de la Défense Nationale. Journalist since 1989, founded B2 - Bruxelles2 in 2008. EU/NATO correspondent in Brussels for Sud-Ouest (previously West-France and France-Soir).

One thought on “Harsh words on the policy of deportations in the West Bank and East Jerusalem + Gaza (Update)"

  • Kasia Lemanska

    We find the same lucidity in the consuls' report on East Jerusalem, but that does not change the situation: the EU is incapable of going beyond a simple declarative policy and taking real pressure measures against the State of Israel, which is in no way encouraged to put an end to colonization, to lift the blockade of Gaza, to stop discriminating against the Palestinians of Israel, to respect the rights of refugees,….

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