The European Commission announced on Monday that it would review itsdevelopment aid of 691 million euros ($729 million) for Palestinians andimmediately halt payments in response to Hamas’ attack on Israel.
Germany and Austria also suspended their bilateral development aid toPalestinians on the same day, while Italy stated that suspending aid wasnot on the table for discussion. Europe plays a significant role inproviding aid to the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, whereapproximately 2.1 million people, including 1 million children, requirehumanitarian assistance.
It remains uncertain if these aid suspensions also apply to humanitarianassistance. The European Commission did not respond immediately to requestsfor clarification. Oliver Varhelyi, the European Commissioner forNeighbourhood and Enlargement, described the scale of violence againstIsrael as a turning point and emphasized that “business as usual” was nolonger an option.
Spain disagreed with the suspension of European Commission aid forPalestinians and expressed its concerns about the decision being madewithout consulting member states’ foreign ministers. Spain’s foreign officecalled for an urgent discussion during a special EU meeting on Tuesday.
Hamas’ recent actions, including the killing of Israelis and abductions,led to Israel’s heaviest bombardment of Gaza, resulting in over 400casualties. Varhelyi announced the postponement of all new budget proposalsfor Palestinian aid, emphasizing the need to address the foundations ofpeace, tolerance, and co-existence.
European Union foreign ministers will hold an emergency meeting on Tuesdayto discuss the situation, including a review of development aid. The totalEU assistance allocated for the Palestinian people in the 2022 budget was296 million euros. Notably, the EU Commission, Germany, and Austria did notdifferentiate between Gaza, governed by Hamas, and the larger West Bank,led by the Western-backed Palestinian Authority under President MahmoudAbbas.
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Austria suspended approximately 19 million euros ($20 million) indevelopment aid for select projects, while Germany’s Development Minister,Svenja Schulze, announced the re-examination of engagement with thePalestinian territories, temporarily halting payments for bilateral aidprojects. Germany’s development ministry had earmarked 250 million eurosfor bilateral projects in the Palestinian territories for this and the nextyear.
However, the exact disbursement for this year was not disclosed. Despiteemphasizing solidarity with Israel, some politicians in Germany raisedconcerns about suspending aid, arguing that not all Palestinians should beheld responsible for Hamas’ actions.
The Green-run foreign ministry in Germany stated its intention to continuedisbursing the 73 million euros allocated for Palestinians throughinternational organizations and the United Nations, which were separatefrom the development ministry funds.
Italy did not consider suspending development aid, and the UK expressedits intent to continue providing aid to Palestinian refugees through theUnited Nations, with no plans to change its approach.