The European Parliament was accused of bias against Israel on Wednesday after a new report on the European Union’s relations with the Palestinian Authority singled out the Jewish state for opprobrium.
“This report was supposed to be about the #EU’s relationship with the Palestinian Authority,” Anna-Michelle Asimakopoulou — a Greek member of the European Parliament — tweeted. “We have ended up with a report that has more references to #Israel than to #Palestine.”
“Once again, too many in the @Europarl_EN willing to take any opportunity to attack Israel,” she added.
This report was supposed to be about the #EU’s relationship with the Palestinian Authority.
We have ended up with a report that has more references to #Israel than to #Palestine.
Once again, too many in the @Europarl_EN willing to take any opportunity to attack Israel. pic.twitter.com/rrXh4mZgi7
— Anna Michelle Asimakopoulou MEP (@AnnaAsimakopoul) July 12, 2023
The document — which can be read in full here and is titled “Draft European Parliament Recommendation to the Council, the Commission and the Vice-President of the Commission / High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy on relations with the Palestinian Authority” — uses the terms “Israel” or “Israeli” 75 times, while referring to the “Palestinian Authority,” its purported subject, on only seven occasions, with an additional 30 mentions of “Palestine.”
Among other demands of Israel, the report calls on it to “stop destroying vital civilian infrastructure and illegally exploiting water and land resources in the oPt [occupied Palestinian territories], including East Jerusalem” and “reduce the physical and administrative restrictions on Palestinian economic activities and trade.”
In remarks at the European Parliament on Wednesday, Asimakopoulou described the report as “undeniably imbalanced.”
“It’s also disappointing that major issues of importance in our engagement with the Palestinian Authority have been completely overlooked in the report,” she added, referring to antisemitic content in Palestinian Authority textbooks.
“The report also fails to focus sufficiently on other actors that play a major role in the region, and I mean terrorist organizations like Hamas, or the influence of Iran or the IRGC [Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps],” she noted.
“I see this report as having being used as a vehicle for those who wish to criticize Israel, and will take any opportunity to do so,” Asimakopoulou concluded.
The American Jewish Committee’s Transatlantic Institute welcomed Asimakopoulou’s remarks, tweeting, “Bravo @AnnaAsimakopoul for pointing out that the @Europarl_EN report on the Palestinian Authority spends more time criticizing Israel than discussing the PA and overlooks major issues, such as antisemitic incitement in Palestinian textbooks. ”
Bravo @AnnaAsimakopoul for pointing out that the @Europarl_EN report on the Palestinian Authority spends more time criticizing Israel than discussing the PA and overlooks major issues, such as antisemitic incitement in Palestinian textbooks.
Watch her powerful remarks here👇 pic.twitter.com/LsYB6OR8le
— Transatlantic Inst. (@AJCTAI) July 12, 2023
The European Leadership Network (ELNET) tweeted, “Despite the topic of this report being about the EU-PA relations, the report quickly devolved into a tool for a large group of Members of Parliament (MEPs) to include defamatory claims against Israel. The Report, which was originally adopted by the Foreign Affairs Committee two weeks ago, included much biased language against Israel while largely ignoring Palestinian terrorism.”
🚨🚨ELNET Statement on the European Parliament vote on EU-PA relations – July 12, 2023🚨🚨
Yesterday, the European Parliament (EP) adopted a Report with recommendations on the relations with the Palestinian Authority.
Despite the topic of this report being about the EU – PA… pic.twitter.com/AehiRePfeu
— ELNET (@elnetwork_eu) July 13, 2023
