Left EU MEPs Criticize Parliament for Blocking West Bank Debate

(MENAFN) The Left group in the European Parliament criticized the legislature on Monday after its request to discuss Israel’s recent moves to expand control in the occupied West Bank was denied.

"Once again, the Parliament decided to turn a blind eye to violence in Palestine,” the group said on the social media platform X.

Reports indicate that the debate proposal faced opposition from a coalition of center-right and far-right members in the parliament.

Members of the European Parliament are currently convening in Strasbourg from February 9–12 for a plenary session to address EU matters and international developments.

Recently, Israel’s security cabinet approved measures including repealing a law preventing the sale of Palestinian land to Jewish citizens, unsealing land ownership records, and transferring authority over building permits in a Hebron settlement bloc from the Palestinian municipality to Israel’s civil administration.

These policies also increase Israeli control in areas designated as Area A and Area B, citing alleged violations such as unlicensed construction, water disputes, and damage to archaeological and environmental sites. The expansion allows for demolitions and the seizure of Palestinian property, even in zones under the civil and security authority of the Palestinian administration.

According to reports, the International Court of Justice ruled in July 2024 that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory is illegal and called for the removal of all settlements in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

Since launching military operations in Gaza in October 2023, Israel has intensified actions in the West Bank, including killings, arrests, forced displacement, and settlement expansion—steps Palestinians say aim to facilitate the formal annexation of the occupied lands.

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