The Daily Star - The EU is marginalizing itself in Gaza - by Stuart Reigeluth

The Daily Star - Opinion Articles - The EU is marginalizing itself in Gaza

The EU is marginalizing itself in Gaza - by Stuart Reigeluth

The European Union has expressed concern as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has deteriorated to unprecedented levels during the two years in which EU monitors were meant to supervise the passage of Palestinians at the Rafah crossing, but now find themselves restricted to the Dan Gardens beach resort in Ashkelon. Despite the failure to alleviate suffering, the experience was not entirely futile: The EU should never again be hostage to the Israeli border closures policy or a pawn of the parties involved. The EU role in Gaza increased after Israel's 2005 disengagement from the territory. As the first step of the Agreement on Movement and Access (AMA), signed in November 2005 by Israel and the Palestinian Authority (PA), the EU sent a civilian border assistance mission to monitor the Rafah crossing. Brussels initially hailed the mission, known as EUBAM-Rafah, for its rapid deployment to the crossing in December 2005, when a team of 80 monitors began assessing the technical needs and supervising operations by PA police and customs officers. Larger numbers of Palestinians passed to Egypt and back via the Rafah crossing, until Hamas won legislative elections in January 2006.

In early February 2008, European officials restated their concern with the deteriorating situation in Gaza, but to no avail. The US used the EU to provide a facade of impartiality to the AMA, but this broke down when the EU began implementing the Israeli closure policy. Israel has long abused EU humanitarian benevolence. Though the EU takes pride in being the largest donor to the Palestinians, the aid paradoxically helps pay for Israel's occupation. Though it wants desperately to do something, the EU cannot even bring itself to denounce the Israeli destruction of EU-funded projects.Unfortunately Brussels continues to allow its interests to be sidelined. As Israel prepares a renewed invasion of Gaza to stop Qassam rocket attacks, it recently spiked a PA plan to create a buffer zone between the Rafah crossing (with EU monitors) and the Hamas controlled interior of Gaza. Nor does Hamas want the Europeans to be present if they are going to be unassertive. At least to save face, the EU monitors really should either engage more, or simply go home. Then again Brussels will most probably decide to just watch and wait, as usual.