Conviction of Palestinian peace activist Issa Amro by an Israeli military court

20.1.2021

Question for written answer  E-000306/2021
to the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy
Rule 138
Clare Daly (The Left)

Last week, Palestinian peace activist Issa Amro was convicted by an Israeli military court on charges relating to his non-violent activism in the city of Hebron in the occupied West Bank.

An Israeli judge at the Ofer military court – a court that has a 99 % conviction rate against Palestinians – convicted Amro on three counts of protesting without a permit, two counts of ‘obstructing’ an Israeli soldier, and one count of assaulting an Israeli settler in Hebron. Amnesty International has described the case against Amro as ‘politically motivated’ and the charges against him as ‘baseless’ and expressed its concern that the conviction of Mr Amro could pave the way for the further suppression of Palestinian activists and human rights defenders.

• 1.Is the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy aware of this baseless and politically motivated prosecution of a non-violent activist?
• 2.What concrete steps will he take to demonstrate the EU’s opposition to such outrageous actions carried out by the Israeli state?