Fuente: © European Union
http://europa.eu.int

EU: The situation in Gaza

/noticias.info/ Speech on behalf of Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner at the European Parliament Plenary session
Strasbourg, 15 November 2006

Mr President, Honourable Members,

Thank you for inviting me on this symbolic date, 15 November, Palestinian National Day, to speak about the situation in Gaza.

The escalating violence in Gaza recently culminated in the attack by the Israeli Defence Forces on Beit Hanoun on 8 November, which resulted in the death of 18 Palestinian civilians.

In response, my colleague Benita Ferrero-Waldner made a statement saying that she was “profoundly shocked by this particular event.” Our thoughts now go to the Uthamina family in particular, who lost 6 women and 8 children killed in their sleep, and to all the innocent Palestinians and Israelis who have lost their lives in this spiral of violence.

After the attack, Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner called on all sides to stop violence and give dialogue a chance. Palestinians factions should stop firing rockets into Israeli territory. Whilst we recognise Israel’s right to self defence, this should not come at the price of innocent lives.

The Beit Hanoun attack is the latest in a series of incursions into the Gaza Strip which started on 28 June. Military operations have caused damage to vital infrastructure, especially in Gaza (including the power plant, major roads and bridges, and government buildings) and killed almost 300 Palestinians, mostly civilians. In response, this year the Commission has stepped up its assistance to meet increased emergency and humanitarian needs.

In June 2006, we launched the Temporary International Mechanism, which channels Member States and European Community Budget resources to contribute to relieve the socio economic crisis in the Palestinian territories. TIM has supported the delivery of basic services to 1.3 million people living in the Gaza Strip and social allowances to 100,000 vulnerable Palestinians. The operation is now increasing its outreach to 150,000 cases.

The Commission, through ECHO, has allocated €84 million to help vulnerable Palestinian households through the provision of food, water supply and sanitation, health and social protection. The EC is also providing a € 26 million package of food aid. Food and cash subsidies are channelled through UNRWA to Palestinian refugees registered as special hardship cases, while food packages are distributed to non-refugees via the UN World Food Programme.

The Commission is also a major donor to UNRWA. In 2006 we have provided €64 million to its General Fund. UNRWA manages health, education and other social services for Palestinian refugees. In Gaza these services constitute the only element of stability in an insecure environment.

Our efforts can alleviate the humanitarian crisis for the Palestinians. But its root cause, the lack of hope in a peaceful solution for Israelis and Palestinians, must be tackled urgently. There is an urgent need to return to a comprehensive peace process with a clear political perspective.

The process of reconciliation between Palestinians must be given a chance. We should encourage President Abbas to continue efforts to form a national unity government, with a platform reflecting Quartet principles and allowing for early engagement. This will contribute to restoring hope for a viable and independent state for the Palestinians.

That is why the General affairs and external relation Council - which met on Monday - has welcomed the proposal of the Commission to provide an additional support to the Palestinians, as soon as a national unity would be formed. In order to provide this support before the end of this year, we will have to resort to the emergency aid reserve and need the agreement of the budget authority. The Commission will count on the EP support.

In parallel to the EU assistance, Israel should release hundreds of millions of dollars of tax and customs revenues, which they collected on behalf of the Palestinian Authority and which they withheld since March in response to the formation of the Hamas-led Government.

We should all work together so that on the occasion of next year’s Palestinian National Day, we can celebrate progress towards the creation of a democratic, viable and sovereign Palestinian State. notas_de_prensa_archivo