EU: Israeli-Palestinian Peace Process Must Continue

Brussels, MINA – The main spokesman for the European Union (EU) Commission for Foreign Policy, Peter Stano, said, given the recent developments in the West Bank, it is necessary to reopen the peace process between Israel and the Palestinians.

“The European Union follows the recent violent flare-up in the West Bank with great concern,” Peter said in a statement to the media as quoted by MEMO on Thursday.

He stressed that the EU calls on all parties to exercise maximum restraint to prevent the recurrence of violence and to avoid all forms of provocation.

“The latest events underscore once again the need to restore political horizons, to pave the way towards relaunching the peace process as soon as possible between Israel and the Palestinians,” he said.

He added that the bloc is working with both sides, as well as international partners to support the relaunch of these negotiations.

Tensions have been rising across the Palestinian territories since early April, amid Israel’s repeated campaign of arrests in the occupied West Bank. Hundreds of Palestinians were injured in random attacks by Israeli resident forces on the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound.

Daily settler attacks on the site (Al-Aqsa Mosque) to celebrate the week-long Jewish Passover holiday have further inflamed the situation.

Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site for Muslims. Jews refer to the area as the Temple Mount, claiming that it was the site of two Jewish temples in ancient times.

The Israeli occupation occupied East Jerusalem, where Al-Aqsa is located, during the 1967 Arab-Israeli war. It annexed the entire city in 1980, in a move never recognized by the international community. (T/RE1)

Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)