mr president today we are debating a resolution about humanitarian aid
before making my contribution i would like to stress that i am not speaking on behalf of the ind dem group as it has no position on this topic
instead i am speaking as an mep on behalf of myself and of my people
the vast majority of the people of gaza must rely on humanitarian aid for their very survival food water shelter clothes and especially medicine
this is a population that has been under siege for a very long time
all crossing points have been closed for eighteen months and now with the terrible recent aggression visited on the people of gaza they are even more desperate
because the siege has still not been lifted and crossings are still closed it is very difficult to get essentials to the people
i note in recital e of this resolution that we europeans give ourselves a nice pat on the back for our humanitarian aid efforts
you commissioner talked of the political efforts that you are making but do we deserve this praise
israel-eu trade is worth eur twenty-seven billion annually
if we really wanted action on gaza we would use the power that this trade gives us by imposing economic sanctions
our refusal to do this even at the height of the bombing in january indicated that we prefer the status quo of business as usual with our contribution of humanitarian aid possibly being a salve to our conscience
not only are we unwilling to risk upsetting a good business market for the sake of bringing injustice in gaza to an end but we are also unwilling so far to dissolve or even just suspend the eu-israel agreement
i have a great love of the jewish people
in college i took the opportunity to study several courses of their history and literature under a rabbi
however friendship does not mean blindness but the willingness to be honest
actually judging by demonstrations that took place in the major cities of israel there are many israeli citizens who publicly oppose their government's action
to return to the urgency of the humanitarian aid rebuilding physical infrastructure is important but it is understandable that agencies may be hesitant to rebuild when it looks as though an even more threatening regime is taking over in israel
rebuilding human infrastructure however cannot wait
we must get supplies in
i would especially point out that the particularly vicious weaponry used in january has left many people with missing limbs and terrible burns
i myself know what it is like to have a healthy child become disabled
we must get intervention medical and educational to all those thousands of people especially children who since the new year have become disabled for life
as we help them we must record their stories to begin the process of gathering evidence for targeted attacks and possible war crimes
