EU urged to protect Palestinians during EU-Palestine dialogue News
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EU urged to protect Palestinians during EU-Palestine dialogue

Human Rights Watch (HRW) urged the EU on Monday to focus on the protection of Palestinians’ rights in light of the first EU-Palestine High-Level Political Dialogue of April 14.

HRW claimed the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, and other Commissioners must address the repression, arbitrary arrests and torturing faced by critics of the Palestinian Authority. Associate EU director at HRW Claudio Francavilla said, “Israeli authorities’ atrocities do not give the Palestinian Authority a free pass to arrest and torture critics and opponents.” He argues that Palestinians are living between the repressive authority of both Israel and Palestine. According to Francavilla, “If the EU really cares about the human rights of Palestinians, it should take long overdue action to hold Israeli authorities to account and stop financing the Palestinian authorities’ machinery of repression.”

The European Commission recently announced a program for Palestinian recovery and resilience worth €1.6 billion. This program aims to fund the delivery of services for Palestinians, foster economic recovery in Gaza, East Jerusalem, and the West Bank, and support the private sector.

HRW argues the EU should denounce the Palestinian authorities’ abuses. Reports suggest Palestinian security forces arbitrarily arrest critics and mistreat and torture detainees without accountability. Rights organizations like the Palestinian Human Rights Organization Council recently evidenced that authorities are responsible for violations of Palestinians’ freedoms of opinion and expression and their right to physical integrity. Moreover, the Palestinian authorities have taken a stance restricting media freedom and limiting the spread of information. In January 2025, the media network Al Jazeera was restricted in Palestine.

The EU recently met with Israeli officials during the EU-Israel Association Council. In the meeting with Palestinian authorities, the EU aims to discuss Palestine-Israeli relations and the possibility of advancing a two-state solution to the conflict in Gaza. More information on the results of the meeting is expected in the coming days.

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