Europe Refuses to Meet Commitments to Protect Israel
Last week, the Israeli cabinet approved a plan to turn security at the Rafah crossing (between Gaza and Egypt) over to European Union inspectors:
The cabinet on Tuesday approved the deployment of European inspectors at the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, a breakthrough that would grant the Palestinians some freedom of movement without Israeli controls for the first time in four decades. According to the decision, the EU personnel will enforce security procedures stipulated by Israel.
Turns out, that last part about enforcing security procedures was kind of a lie:
Days after Israel surprised many by offering the European Union a security role along the Gaza-Sinai border, European officials Sunday rejected an Israeli proposal that they pro-actively protect that border against arms smugglers...
They reportedly balked at an Israeli proposal that EU officers actually arrest individuals caught attempting to smuggle illegal weapons into the volatile strip... Meanwhile, the PA continued to reject Israel's demand that it be allowed to monitor the Rafah Crossing linking Gaza to Egypt via live video feed.
Within a week, look for Israel's insistence that the European Union live up to its explicit promises to appear in the media as "Israeli refusal to cooperate" with the Palestinians and the Europeans regarding the Rafah crossing.
The cabinet on Tuesday approved the deployment of European inspectors at the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, a breakthrough that would grant the Palestinians some freedom of movement without Israeli controls for the first time in four decades. According to the decision, the EU personnel will enforce security procedures stipulated by Israel.
Turns out, that last part about enforcing security procedures was kind of a lie:
Days after Israel surprised many by offering the European Union a security role along the Gaza-Sinai border, European officials Sunday rejected an Israeli proposal that they pro-actively protect that border against arms smugglers...
They reportedly balked at an Israeli proposal that EU officers actually arrest individuals caught attempting to smuggle illegal weapons into the volatile strip... Meanwhile, the PA continued to reject Israel's demand that it be allowed to monitor the Rafah Crossing linking Gaza to Egypt via live video feed.
Within a week, look for Israel's insistence that the European Union live up to its explicit promises to appear in the media as "Israeli refusal to cooperate" with the Palestinians and the Europeans regarding the Rafah crossing.
