Dr. Ashrawi on the European Union’s Nonbiding Heads of Mission Report
In response to the European Union’s nonbinding Heads of Mission report for 2012, PLO Executive Committee member, Dr. Hanan Ashrawi said:
“We welcome the European Union’s Heads of Mission report for 2012 that recommends imposing sanctions on bodies and organizations involved in the construction of illegal settlements in the occupied Palestinian Territory.”
“With Israel's most recent escalation of settlement activities in and around Jerusalem, the rise of settler violence and Israeli violations of international law and Palestinian rights, it is of utmost urgency for European countries to follow this courageous assessment with concrete and tangible steps and with punitive measures,” stressed Dr. Ashrawi.
“Therefore, we call on the European Union, whether as individual countries or collectively, to stand up to Israel and implement bold initiatives that demand European divestment from settlements and settlement products. Israel’s settlement campaign is the single most significant threat to the two-state solution, and now is the time to exercise the political will that is required to hold Israel accountable before any and all chances for peace are destroyed,” concluded Dr. Ashrawi.