Brussels, 10/06/2008 (Agence Europe) - Israel is in the process of “creating irreversible situations”, said Annemie Neyts-Uyttebroeck, member of the ALDE Group of the European Parliament and President of the European Liberal Party (ELDR), on her return from a mission in the region with members of the European Parliament's working group on the Middle East. The Belgian MEP, who co-chaired the delegation, paid particular attention to the situation in the West Bank, which is obviously suffering from the occupation, she said. “The 'wall', road segregation, the checkpoints - you cannot forget it for an instant”, she said. She was firm in stating that, concerning the stated intention to bolster EU-Israel relations for the next Association Council on 16 July: “Until there are tangible and lasting improvements on the ground, I shall not be in favour”. Ms Neyts, who calls for the population of Gaza to be assisted without “recognising” Hamas, nonetheless states that “one should never lose hope” even if things get tough. The EU, she said, should “be far more demanding towards Israel regarding its behaviour and its policies in the West Bank, and remain vigilant towards the Palestinian Authority and, finally, put pressure on Hamas to stop launching rocket attacks and to stop its violations of human rights”.
Ms Neyts was “particularly disconcerted” by the fact that Israel is “putting in place a whole brand new road network reserved exclusively for Israelis”, surrounded by “high walls, so that you can't even see the Palestinian neighbours”. “In other places the roads go under Palestinian soil”, she said. Around Jerusalem “this system of roads and walls not only breaks up the territory but closes off Palestinian villages, decreasing the mobility of their inhabitants”. “The ban on Palestinians to use this road network is a form of discrimination that I have seen nowhere else”, she concluded. Segregation? Ms Neyts takes the view that words are less eloquent than the reality. The fact is, she said, that “there is constant and generalised discrimination to the extent that one has to admit segregation is the heart of Israeli policy towards the Palestinians”. The Israeli housing minister, whom Ms Neyts met, confirmed the fact that this was the determined intention.
On the subject of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), the president of the European Liberal Party appears circumspect, saying: “I am waiting to see what comes out of it, but I think that the EU above all needs to better define and clarify its policy towards the Mediterranean Basin and the rim countries, which swings too much between the concern to keep control of the process and the need to recognise the decision-making autonomy of these countries”. (F.B./transl. jl)