The European Parliament on Wednesday overwhelmingly passed an amendment endorsing a thorough review of funding to the Palestinians in the wake of the deadly Hamas attacks from Gaza.
“The European Union has always been the largest international donor to Palestine, and this will not change,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in the parliament chamber. “But as the situation on the ground evolves, it is also essential that we urgently and carefully review our financial assistance for Palestine.”
The amendment, adopted with 581 votes in favor, 43 abstentions and 13 votes against, is effectively a resolution that adds a clause to the 705-member parliament’s annual budget report for 2024.
It calls for the E.U. budget to “combat hate and fundamentalism,” while reaffirming the European Commission’s Oct. 11 announcement that the E.U.’s entire development portfolio to the Palestinians, an annual total of €691 million ($728 million), will be put under review.
The resolution condemns the “brutal terrorist attacks perpetrated by Hamas against Israel and its people,” and “calls on the Commission to conduct its announced review thoroughly, including the use of all Union funds in the region.”
Last week, the European Union put all of its development funding to the Palestinian territories under review following Hamas’s offensive against Israel.
Earlier this year, the European Union official who oversees aid to the Palestinian Authority voiced support for conditioning the release of funds on the removal of incitement and antisemitism from P.A. textbooks.
“A generation in Gaza has grown up learning to hate, and to choose violence and martyrdom over life. The result is the unspeakable atrocities committed on October 7,” said IMPACT-se CEO Marcus Sheff, whose group monitors hate in textbooks.
“It is more important than ever that not a single cent of international aid, including European Union funds, is used to fuel this deadly process. This measure is an important step in the right direction.”