by Alternative Information Center (AIC)
The European Union forum for the Middle East encourages states to seek compensation from Israel for its accelerated demolition of donated humanitarian structures in the West Bank.
The European Union (EU) forum responsible for Middle East affairs recommended that member states request compensation from Israel for its demolition of humanitarian buildings and infrastructure projects financed by them in Area C of the West Bank, Haaretz reports.
The resolution was approved at a meeting of the EU’s Mashreq/Maghreb Working Party, which is comprised of representatives from all 28 member states.
Though the decision is non-binding, it inspired a flurry of “talks” between Israeli EU representative Lars Faaborg-Andersen and EU ambassadors, as well as outcry from Israel's foreign ministry.
According to Haaretz, Israel’s refusal to discuss, much less stop, its demolition of Palestinian structures in Area C – including many funded by the EU – galvanized state representatives to demand compensation for the destruction.
The Oslo Accords define 60% of the West Bank as Area C – that is, under the full civil and military control of Israeli authorities. To build a home or even a tent or a fence in Area C Palestinians must obtain a building permit from the Israeli military. But, between 2010 and 2014, Israeli authorities approved just 1.5% of all building permit requests in Area C.
Israeli authorities claim that EU humanitarian structures, like most other structures serving Palestinians in Area C, lack these suspiciously difficult to obtain construction permits and consequently warrant demolition.
A report by the United Nations Organization for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) reports that this year, Israeli forces have destroyed or confiscated 273 assistance items or structures – up more than 150% compared to all of 2015, when 108 of such structures were demolished.
But Israeli demolitions have spiked overall this year. In 2016 so far, Israeli forces have demolished a total of 959 Palestinian structures in the West Bank and East Jerusalem. Comparatively, in 2015, Israeli authorities destroyed 531 structures in these areas.
