Arab Envoys, EU Officials Meet On Gaza

(MENAFN- Kuwait News Agency (KUNA)) BRUSSELS, Oct 23 (KUNA) -- A delegation of Arab ambassadors held intensive meetings with officials from European Union institutions in Brussels during the past couple of days to discuss the dangerous escalation in Gaza Strip.
In a statement on Monday, the ambassadors noted that some European statements and positions send "wrong messages to the Israeli forces the occupying power who may feel encouraged to increase their attacks, their killing of civilians and their targeting public and private facilities and infrastructure in the Gaza Strip."
They pointed the harm resulting from the adoption of "certain European officials and political institutions of an unbalanced and unacceptable approach of double standards when speaking about and describing the reality of what is happening in Gaza and the real reasons that led to the deterioration of the situation."
They stressed the necessity of looking at the real reasons behind the current outbreak, including the absence of a political horizon and failing to address the root causes of the conflict, highlighting the importance of pressuring Israel to stop the cycle of violence, and put in place a cease fire, bring urgent humanitarian aid into Gaza, and prevent the internal or forcible displacement of Palestinians in or out of Gaza Strip.
In their meetings, the Arab ambassadors stated that there can be no peace nor stability in the region without the implementation of the relevant UN resolutions of international legitimacy, the withdrawal of the Israeli occupation from all occupied Arab territories and the establishment of a sovereign independent Palestinian State, with East Jerusalem as its capital in line with relevant international resolutions, international legitimacy and the Arab Peace Initiative.
They also stressed the need to stop targeting Rafah border crossing from the Palestinian side and for humanitarian aid to enter safely, while expressing absolute rejection of any Israeli plan to internally or forcibly displace or transfer the residents of the Gaza Strip, as this constitutes ethnic cleansing and is contrary to Israel's legal obligations as the occupying power in accordance with the four Geneva Conventions and international humanitarian law.
The delegation condemned Israeli occupation army continuous incursions into the West Bank, the unacceptable Israeli settler violence against defenseless civilians and violating holy Muslim and Christian sites including East Jerusalem, warning of widening the scope of the conflict and of the dire consequences it will have on the entire region.
The ambassadors conveyed the Arab position as reflected in the resolution issued by the Extraordinary Session of the Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Arab League, held in Cairo October 11, condemning the targeting of civilians, and highlighting the urgent need to stop the current Israel aggression on the Gaza Strip.
The group met officials from the European Council, the European Commission, the European Parliament, as well as the European External and Action Service (EEAS) as well as with officials from Belgium, Luxembourg and NATO.
Mandated by the Council of Arab Ambassadors in Brussels, a delegation of Arab ambassadors including from Palestine, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Lebanon, and the Arab League held intensive meetings over the past few days with officials of the European Union institutions. (end)
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