by Eldad Beck
The same EU that routinely rushes to condemn any "illegal" Jewish settlement construction is now rushing to defend the illegal but non-Jewish settlement of Khan al-Ahmar.
The
first day of the 5779th year of the Hebrew calendar will be remembered
as a historic day for EU hypocrisy: On that day, EU member states,
including those that claim they are Israel's greatest friends, decided
to stand with European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini and
release a statement that completely contradicts the supposed principles of the EU.
By calling on the Israeli government not to
act in the spirit of the High Court of Justice's ruling and evacuate
and demolish the illegal Bedouin village of Khan al-Ahmar, Germany,
France, Italy, Spain and Britain have violated official EU foreign
policy, which supports the achievement of peace on the basis of the 1993
Oslo Accords and recognizes Israel as a sovereign state.
According to the Oslo Accords, Israel is
responsible for Area C until other diplomatic agreements are reached on
the matter. The EU has systematically acted in violation of
international law and the Oslo Accords and without coordinating with
Israel to establish and encourage illegal Bedouin settlements.
The EU routinely rushes to condemn any
construction in "illegal" Jewish settlements beyond the Green Line. But
to the EU, the illegal but non-Jewish settlement of Khan al-Ahmar is an
entirely different matter. It is the EU's stance on Khan al-Ahmar that
makes its objections to "illegal settlements" that much harder to
swallow.
The European Union's decision to place a
question mark, as it were, over the High of Court of Justice's ruling on
a matter that has been deliberated for years, and its calls for the
Israeli government to ignore the High Court's decision are not just an
unprecedented and insolent attempt to meddle in Israel's internal
affairs, they are blatant attempts to undermine the foundations of
Israeli democracy and a vote of no confidence in the independence of the
Israeli judicial system.
At a time when a U.S. administration with
the most realistic approach to the fundamental issues at the heart of
the Arab-Israeli conflict has shown the Palestinians there is a price to
be paid for placing obstacles in the path to a peace agreement with
Israel, Europe has chosen to defend its Palestinian protégés in such a
way that prevents any chance for an agreement to be reached.
Europe is now the greatest obstacle to
reaching a regional peace agreement. And when EU representatives attend
an exhibit in Khan al-Ahmar that features anti-Semitic propaganda ahead
of its demolition, Europe can no longer feign surprise when it is
accused of anti-Semitism.
Eldad Beck
Source: http://www.israelhayom.com/opinions/a-historic-day-for-european-hypocrisy/
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