EU foreign ministers have reversed the decision by the European Commission to suspend payments to the Palestinian Authority, after an emergency meeting in Oman,
The Guardian reports.
Josep Borrell, the EU’s chief diplomat, said the “overwhelming majority” of EU states were in favour of continued support, adding the funds would “not be cancelled”.
He also said some of Israel’s actions in response to the Hamas attack at the weekend breached international law. Israel has launched airstrikes from land and sea on the Gaza Strip and pledged to enforce a total siege on the densely populated territory.
“Israel has the right to defend [itself] but it has to be done accordingly with international law, humanitarian law, and some decisions are contrary to international law,” Borrell said after a meeting of EU foreign affairs ministers in Muscat.
Israeli airstrikes hit Gaza City on Tuesday.
“Some of the actions – and the United Nations has already said that – [such] as cutting water, cutting electricity, cutting food to a mass of civilian people is against international law,” Borrell said.
Tuesday’s decision to maintain funding came after the EU was forced to backpedal after the commissioner for neighbourhood and enlargement, Olivér Várhelyi, unexpectedly declared that the 27-nation bloc was immediately suspending “all payments” to the Palestinians. The Hungarian commissioner has long been a critic of aspects of EU aid to Palestine, but it appears he acted without any legal authority or sufficient political support.
The episode is understood to have infuriated Borrell, who said on Tuesday that the EU would be able to review donations to ensure there was no “leakage” of money to Hamas.
But some EU states have decided to suspend their national contributions pending an investigation. Denmark and Sweden announced they were suspending Palestinian development aid but maintaining humanitarian assistance following the Hamas militant group’s attack on Israel.
The government in Copenhagen said in a statement it had “decided to put Danish development assistance to Palestine on hold”.
“A thorough review will be conducted to ensure that no Danish funding is misused to indirectly support terrorist organisations that attack Israel,” it said. The review will be conducted “in close dialogue with Denmark’s partners in the EU and the Nordic countries”.
