Activites

• 2009/02/18 Results of vote in Parliament
  • Results of vote in Parliament
  • Debate in Parliament summary

    The House held a debate, following on statements by the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy and by the Commission, on the role of the EU in the Middle East.    A motion for a resolution closing this debate was due to be put to the vote later that same day.

  • T6-0057/2009 summary

    The European Parliament adopted by 488 votes to 5 with 19 abstentions, a resolution on humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip. The resolution had been tabled for consideration in plenary by the EPP-ED, PES, ALDE, UEN, Greens/ALE and GUE/NGL groups. It noted that the conflict in the Gaza Strip has further aggravated the humanitarian crisis in the area, which has reached an inhuman level. 88% of the Gaza population is dependent on food aid. It further noted that the border crossings in and out of the Gaza Strip have been closed for 18 months. The embargo on the movement of people and goods obstructs the delivery of humanitarian aid to the population and the quantity of goods allowed into the Gaza Strip is insufficient to meet even basic humanitarian needs. Key public services are facing serious shortages.Parliament stated that it recognises the sufferings of the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip and calls for increased, immediate and unhindered humanitarian aid to them, which it is a moral duty to provide and which must be delivered without any conditions and restrictions. It calls on the Israeli authorities to allow a continuous and adequate flow of humanitarian aid, which includes all the necessary materials for UNRWA and other UN and international agencies to perform their duties, and which meets the needs of the population.Members call once again for an end to the blockade of the Gaza Strip, in compliance with the Agreement on Movement and Access of 15 November 2005, for the immediate and sustainable reopening of the crossing points, and for the prevention of the smuggling of, and illicit trafficking in, arms and ammunition.Parliament wants the financial, economic and social rehabilitation of the Gaza Strip, which is an essential factor for security in the region. It recalls that aid should include payments in cash to pay salaries, pensions and allowances for the most vulnerable people and families, and calls on the Israeli authorities not to hinder the bank transfer of money.Members believe, with a view to the International Conference in support of the Palestinian Economy for the Reconstruction of Gaza to be held in Sharm el-Sheikh on 2 March 2009, that any sustainable reconstruction and development policy in the Gaza Strip needs a durable cease-fire supported by the resumption of serious peace negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians together with a Palestinian national reconciliation process.Furthermore, the EU’s financial support to the Palestinians should not be undermined by continuous destruction, which is diminishing support for reconstruction projects amongst the European public. Parliament calls on the Commission to draw up a comprehensive evaluation of the medium- and long-term prospects for reconstruction projects in the Gaza Strip financed by the Union within the framework of PEGASE (Palestinian-European Mechanism for Management of Socio-Economic Aid) and ECHO (Humanitarian Aid Department of the European Commission) and their budgetary implications. It urges other donors to make pledges at the International Conference and to commit to the pledges they made at the donors’ conference in Paris on 17 December 2007.Lastly, the resolution underlines once again that heading 4 of the EU budget is chronically underfinanced and that pledging additional assistance to Gaza should not be at the expense of other policies. Additional funds could be mobilised only by using all the means provided for under the Interinstitutional Agreement of 17 May 2006 on budgetary discipline and sound financial management.

Documents

• Results of vote in Parliament: Results of vote in Parliament
• Debate in Parliament: Debate in Parliament
• Decision by Parliament, 1st reading/single reading: T6-0057/2009

History

(these mark the time of scraping, not the official date of the change)