Israel rejects Belgian demand to compensate for razing Palestinian homes
Belgium is one of the Western countries that has been most critical of Israel in recent years, even inviting a representative of an NGO with ties to the terror group PFLP to the UN security council.
By LAHAV HARKOVIsraeli authorities demolish a house and a shed near the West Bank city of Hebron, on October 18, 2020.(photo credit: WISSAM HASHLAMON/FLASH90)
Israel has rejected Belgium’s request that Jerusalem compensate Palestinians for demolishing homes earlier this month.“It is regrettable that European aid money finds its way to the financing of illegal activities,” the Foreign Ministry said this week. “Donor states should use their taxpayers’ money toward the funding of legal construction and projects in territories that are controlled by Israel and make sure those are planned and executed in accordance with the law and in coordination with the relevant Israeli authorities.”The response came after Belgium condemned the demolition of four homes in El-Rakeez, near Hebron, and demanded compensation for it in a statement released Friday. The homes were built with funding from Brussels.Israel maintains that the homes in Area C, which is under Israeli control under the terms of the Oslo Accords, were built illegally.The laws in Area C, including planning and construction regulations, apply to Israelis and Palestinians and are subject to judicial review, with both Israelis and Palestinians having access to the Israeli court system, the Foreign Ministry said.The Belgian Foreign Ministry said it “supports such infrastructure projects because they meet urgent humanitarian needs... [and] they are always carried out in accordance with international humanitarian law.”The statement did not refer to the rules of the governing body of Area C, which is the IDF, nor the international agreement that gave Israel that authority.The Belgian statement also claimed that “the demolition of infrastructure and housing in the occupied West Bank is contrary to international humanitarian law... in particular Israel’s obligations as occupying power.”Belgium is one of several European states that has funded construction in Area C without Israeli authorization in recent years.In addition, Belgium is one of the Western countries that has been most critical of Israel in recent years, even inviting a representative of an NGO with ties to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terrorist group to address the UN Security Council. That invitation was later rescinded.
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