MOTION FOR A RESOLUTION
13.2.2008
pursuant to Rule 103(2) of the Rules of Procedure
by Pasqualina Napoletano, Thijs Berman, Véronique De Keyser, Richard Howitt, Jamila Madeira and Béatrice Patrie
on behalf of the PSE Group
on the situation in Gaza
B6‑0069/2008
European Parliament resolution on the situation in Gaza
The European Parliament,
– having regard to its previous resolutions on the Middle East, and in particular those of 1 June 2006 on the humanitarian situation in the Palestinian territories and the role of the EU, 16 November 2006 on the situation in the Gaza Strip, 21 June 2007 on MEDA and financial support to Palestine - evaluation, implementation and control, 12 July 2007 on the Middle East and 11 October 2007 on the humanitarian situation in Gaza,
– having regard to UN Security Council Resolutions 242 (1967) and 338 (1973),
– having regard to the Fourth Geneva Convention (1949),
– having regard to the conclusions of the External Relations Council of 28 January 2008,
– having regard to Rule 103(2) of its Rules of Procedure,
A. whereas, as a result of the embargo on the movement of people and goods, the partial denial of access to drinking water, food and electricity, and the lack of essential goods and services, the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip has further deteriorated,
B. whereas the border crossings in and out of Gaza have been closed for months, and whereas the embargo on the movement of people and goods has further paralysed the economy in the Gaza Strip,
C. whereas key public service sectors, including the health and education systems, are facing serious shortcomings owing to a lack of the basic materials required for their functioning, and whereas the lack of medicines and of fuel to run the generators in hospitals in the Gaza Strip is costing Palestinian lives,
D. whereas hundreds of thousands of Palestinians crossed the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, after the breaking down of the border wall, in order to find essential goods to meet their basic needs,
E. whereas, after a long period without such acts, a suicide terrorist attack in Dimona killed and wounded civilians, and whereas the firing of rockets by Palestinian militias from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory has continued, and the military operations killing and endangering civilians and the extrajudicial targeted killings by the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip have also continued,
F. whereas the situation and the recent developments in the Gaza Strip undermine the ongoing negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians and the efforts to conclude an agreement by the end of 2008, as declared by the parties at the Annapolis Conference,
G. whereas the European Union has provided considerable financial support to the Palestinians in the past years, and whereas the EU's Temporary International Mechanism and project funding have played an important role in avoiding a humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, and the European Union continues to provide, including through UNWRA, humanitarian assistance to the Palestinian people and direct subsidies to employees of the Palestinian Authority in the Gaza Strip; whereas PEGASE will constitute a new financing mechanism for EU and other international assistance to the Palestinian Territories,
H. whereas the participants in the International Donors' Conference for the Palestinian State, held in December 2007 in Paris, pledged a total of USD 7.4 billion to support Palestinian institution-building and economic recovery for the next three years,
I. whereas the Special Envoy for the Quartet has identified four priority projects for economic development and institution-building for the Palestinian Territories, including the restoration of the Beit Lahia sewage treatment plant in northern Gaza,
1. Reiterates its deep concern at the humanitarian and political crisis in the Gaza Strip and its further possible grave consequences; considers the recent developments at Rafah, including peaceful events and violent acts, to be the result of that crisis in the Gaza Strip;
2. Expresses its sympathy for the civilian population affected by the violence in Gaza and southern Israel;
3. Reiterates its call for an immediate end to all acts of violence; calls on Israel to cease military actions killing and endangering civilians, and extrajudicial targeted killings; calls on Hamas to assume its responsibilities following the takeover of the Gaza Strip, and to prevent the firing of rockets by Palestinian militias from the Gaza Strip into Israeli territory;
4. Believes that the policy of isolation of the Gaza Strip has failed at both the political and humanitarian level; reiterates its call to all parties to fully respect international law, and notably international humanitarian law;
5. Considers the reaction by Egypt to the disturbances at Rafah, which allowed many Palestinian families to access essential goods to meet their basic needs, to be positive; urges the government of Egypt to continue to play an active role in maintaining peace and stability in the area;
6. Reiterates its call for a controlled re-opening of the crossings in and out of Gaza; calls on Israel to ensure the movement of people and goods at Rafah, Karni and the other crossings, in compliance with the Agreement on Movement and Access; calls for resumption of the EU Border Assistance Mission at Rafah; welcomes the statement by High Representative Solana that a new Council mandate should be considered for the Mission; calls for a stepping-up of the presence and role of international forces in the area within that context;
7. Welcomes the proposal by the Palestinian Authority to take control of the crossings, on the basis of an agreement involving Egypt, Israel and the Palestinian Authority, and supports the recent resolution adopted by the Arab League in that respect; nevertheless invites the Palestinian Authority to help establish the necessary conditions to involve the controlling authorities in the Gaza Strip in this regard;
8. Considers that the embargo on the Gaza Strip represents collective punishment in contravention of international humanitarian law; calls on Israel to fulfil its international obligations, as an occupying power, in the Gaza Strip; calls on Israel to guarantee a continuous and sufficient flow of humanitarian aid, humanitarian assistance and essential goods and services, including fuel and power supplies, to the Gaza Strip; expresses grave concern at the announcement by Israel of progressive five per cent per week cuts in power supplies to the Gaza Strip, which cannot be considered consistent with meeting minimum humanitarian needs;
9. Calls on the Palestinian Authority to engage in cooperation, despite the political deadlock, with Hamas, with the aim of facilitating the functioning of public institutions providing essential services and the operations of the international humanitarian offices, agencies and organisations seeking to improve the conditions of the Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip; stresses the great importance of a permanent geographical connection between, and the peaceful and lasting political reunification of, the Gaza Strip and the West Bank;
10. Reiterates its call for the immediate release of the Israeli corporal Gilad Shalit and of all imprisoned Palestinian former ministers, legislators and mayors; recognises the importance of the release of detainees in building confidence in the context of the current peace talks;
11. Reminds the parties of their commitments, made in Annapolis, to hold negotiations in good faith in order to conclude a peace treaty resolving all outstanding issues, including all core issues, without exception, as specified in previous agreements, by the end of 2008; urges both sides to fulfil their obligations under the Road Map;
12. Calls on the Council and the Commission to continue to guarantee, together with the international community, essential humanitarian aid for the Palestinians living in the Gaza Strip, with special regard to the needs of particularly vulnerable groups; stresses the importance of the new financing mechanism PEGASE; expresses, nevertheless, its deep concern over the destruction of facilities financed within the context of humanitarian aid or project financing provided by the European Union, which undermines the efficiency of EU assistance and affects the solidarity of the public in the Member States;
13. Expresses grave concern over the ecological and human health consequences of the failure to undertake maintenance of sewage treatment facilities, and in particular calls on all parties to facilitate access to the goods needed for the repair and reconstruction of the Beit Lahia plant, as identified by the Special Envoy for the Quartet;
14. Invites its Working Group on the Middle East to examine, in cooperation with the Commission and the international organisations concerned, the consequences of the destruction of infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, with special regard to the facilities financed within the context of the humanitarian aid or project financing provided by the European Union;
15. Instructs its President to forward this resolution to the Council, the Commission, the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, the governments and parliaments of the Member States, the UN Secretary-General, the Special Envoy for the Middle East Quartet, the President of the Euro-Mediterranean Parliamentary Assembly, the President of the Palestinian Authority, the Palestinian Legislative Council, the Israeli Government, the Knesset, and the Egyptian Government and Parliament.