Lieberman invites Italian foreign minister to head EU delegation to Gaza
25 June 2010
In an apparent change of government policy, Israel’s Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman has reportedly invited a delegation of EU ministers headed by Italy’s Franco Frattini to visit the Gaza Strip. Lieberman met with Frattini on Thursday in Rome. According to the Israeli minister’s proposal, Frattini would come with senior foreign ministers, including those of Britain, Germany, France and Norway. The delegation could come within weeks but would not meet Hamas officials, an unnamed Israeli official was quoted by ‘Reuters’ as saying.
The aim of the visit, according to Lieberman, was to present the situation in Gaza, to prove that there was no hunger or humanitarian crisis. Lieberman also wants his European counterparts to visit Sderot and other Israeli towns which have suffered from rockets launched from the Gaza Strip, according to the Israeli news website ‘YNet’, which cited sources close to the foreign minister as saying that the step was intended to advance complete disengagement from Gaza.
Members of the opposition Kadima Party criticized the move, saying the Netanyahu government was granting legitimacy to Hamas. Only last weekend, Israel was strongly criticized by Germany for preventing the entry to the Gaza Strip of a German government minister.
Frattini expressed appreciation of Israel's decision to lighten the blockade of Gaza.
Meanwhile, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE) in Strasbourg called on Israel to completely end its blockade of the Gaza Strip and to allow goods to be delivered to the coastal enclave by land and sea, "without prejudice to its own security," so Palestinians can enjoy "normal living conditions.”
The PACE, comprised of legislators from the 47 member states of the Council of Europe, also criticized the Israeli raid of a Gaza- bound aid flotilla last month as a breach of international law, calling it "manifestly disproportionate." The PACE also called on Israel to halt the construction of new settlements in the West Bank and eastern Jerusalem.
Comments
We welcome any comments you may have on this article.
There is no comment for the moment.
If you are a facebook user you may choose to have the comment appear on your wall.
Comments are moderated and we reserve the right to edit or remove any which are derogatory or offensive.
The WJC is not responsible for the content of any comments.
Get Involved
World Jewish Congress Secretary General Dan Diker speaks on the upcoming debate at the United Nations about the unilateral declaration of statehood by the Palestinians.
