Quarterly Updates

Continued impatience with the absence of progress on a negotiated resolution of the conflict as well as frustration over Israel’s ongoing settlement construction were reflected in a number of European measures in support of Palestinians’ unilateral actions this quarter.

Having offered Israel arguably critical support during OPE, there was frustration in Brussels as Israeli settlement construction announcements unfolded thick and fast on the heels of the 50- day war.

As the quarter opened, UN Secy.-Gen.

There was no significant new EU initiative with regard to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict this quarter and official reactions to events on the ground consisted of statements rather than any involvement of substance.

One UN official in particular was active and vocal in the lead-up to Israel’s assault on Gaza. In early 6/2014, Robert Serry, the UN’s special coordinator for the Middle East peace process, joined other international leaders in welcoming the PA unity govt.

After the tension last quarter over the territorial clause in the Horizon 2020 agreement, excluding Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem from eligibility for EU grants, the official EU rhetoric during this quarter emphasized instead the mutual benefits of cooperation.

On 3/28, during its 25th session in Geneva, the UN Human Rights Council passed 5 resolutions pertaining to Israeli conduct.

At the beginning of the quarter, the EU finally concluded (11/26) an agreement to allow Israel’s participation in the Horizon 2020 scientific research project.

This quarter saw a major dispute between the UNRWA and the personnel that administers its programs in the oPt UNRWA had been facing a financial crunch for some time following the strain on its services placed by the crisis in Syria, and the heightened needs of its beneficiary population in Lebano