The EU's commitment to oppressive complicity

Returning to pre-war conditions in Gaza might prove counterproductive, according to the EU’s ambassador to Israel, Lars Faaborg-Andersen. Citing the possibility of recurring violence without venturing into or mentioning the obvious dynamics of Israel’s colonial aggression, Faaborg-Andersen embarked upon disseminating Israel’s demilitarisation rhetoric while remaining within parameters that have been noted repeatedly at regular intervals.

This translates into “lifting the siege of Gaza, allowing for the reconstruction of the area and a return to some normalcy for the population there, while at the same time safeguarding Israel’s legitimate security issues.” Additional vestiges of oppression include a view already cited by the US during the course of Operation Protective Edge, which would allow PA infiltration into the Gaza Strip under the guise of alleged stability. According to the EU ambassador, such a move would “spearhead the reconstruction.”

John Gatt-Rutter, the EU representative to the West Bank and Gaza, is the author of another discrepancy with regard to Palestinians in Gaza, declaring that conditions remain the same as before Israel’s colonial massacre and suggesting that Palestinians “are currently angry at all sides: the Israelis, the West, the PA and Hamas.” According to the Times of Israel, these statements were uttered to Israeli journalists, an exercise in which Palestinian discontent was imparted to the settler-colonial occupation state as mainly an internal preoccupation. Anger in Gaza, Gatt-Rutter stated, was mostly “aimed at the Palestinians.”

The rhetoric applied by both officials is reminiscent of the exclusionary manner in which previous discussions were carried out. Isolating Israel from the atrocities committed during Protective Edge has enhanced normalisation and Palestinian oblivion, allowing the EU to treat one of the worst colonial atrocities inflicted upon the people of Palestine as a passing political phase.

As in other instances prior to the latest violence, the EU has emphasised the subjugation of the indigenous Palestinians. Agreement between the EU and Israel remains a priority, consolidated by the fact that any reconstruction to address the widespread destruction wrought by Israel’s incessant bombing of Gaza is subject to imperialist clauses and restrictions. It is evident that, far from attempting to address the plight of Palestinians in Gaza in a comprehensive manner, the EU and Israel intend to manipulate the ceasefire conditions and demands into an exercise that addresses only a sliver of the damage caused by Israel’s bombs. The intention is to facilitate oppression through a sustained impoverishment and lack of access to basic services.

With the imposition of unfavourable conditions taking precedence over reconstruction, Faaborg-Andersen has clearly outlined a continuation of the EU’s previous strategy that safeguards settler-colonialism and, as a token gesture towards the colonised and occupied population, creates figments of alleged well-being. Stating the obvious with regard to Gaza, or equating the PA with “stability”, is merely a reflection of the wider imperialist snares targeting Palestinians. As things stand, Abbas retains the power to make a mockery of Palestine at the international level, remaining subservient to hostile demands as well as maintaining his agreement with other impositions such as the deployment of international forces. With the EU expanding its oppressive dominion, the Palestinian narrative faces renewed efforts that attempt to navigate the recent political terrain by invoking the ludicrous demands of past months, without reference to Protective Edge as an accelerating factor in the colonisation process.

The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.