The spokesman of the European External Action Service expressed on Friday 19 August the EU’s concerns about the raids and actions of Israeli forces the previous day against Palestinian Civil Society Organisations in Ramallah.
“A free and strong civil society is indispensable for promoting democratic values and for advancing towards the two-state solution”, he said in a statement. According to the spokesman it is essential that such organisations be allowed to continue their “legitimate and peaceful” activities and crucial to ensure that anti-terrorism legislation did not lead to the undermining of civil society.
The spokesman recalled that some of these organisations had been included in the list of ‘terrorist organisations’ established by the Israeli Ministry of Defence in 2021. “On the basis of information provided thus far (by the Israeli authorities), the allegations of misuse of EU funds by these organisations have not been substantiated”, he said (see EUROPE 12715/14).
The Foreign Ministries of Germany, Belgium, Denmark, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, and Sweden denounced the Israeli raids. “No substantial information has been received from Israel that would justify revising our policy towards the six Palestinian NGOs on the basis of the Israeli decision to designate them as ‘terrorist organisations’. If there is convincing evidence to the contrary, we will act accordingly”, they added.
On another note, on 9 August, the EU announced €261 million of support for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA). This multi-year contribution will support the provision of essential services to Palestinian refugees to the tune of €246 million and €15 million will go to the Food and Resilience Facility to address food insecurity and mitigate the impact of the war in Ukraine. (Original version in French by Camille-Cerise Gessant)