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<a class="gmail-domain gmail-reader-domain" href="https://qudsnen.co/european-countries-rejects-israels-outlawing-of-six-palestinian-ngos/">qudsnen.co</a>
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<h1 class="gmail-reader-title">European countries rejects Israel’s outlawing of six Palestinian NGOs</h1>July 13, 2022</div>
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<p>Occupied Palestine (QNN)- A number of European countries have
rejected Israel’s last year designation of six Palestinian civil society
organisations as terrorist groups, stressing they “will continue our
cooperation and strong support for the civil society in the oPT.”</p>
<p>In a <a href="https://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/en/newsroom/news/-/2542052" rel="noopener" target="_blank">joint statement </a>issued
on Tuesday, the Spokespersons of the Foreign Ministries of Belgium,
Denmark, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain and
Sweden have expressed their opposition to the Israeli designation of six
Palestinian civil society organisations as “terrorist organisations.”</p>
<p>In a move met with widespread condemnation, on 19 October 2021,
Israeli War Minister, Benny Gantz, designated six leading Palestinian
human rights and civil society groups as “terrorist organizations” under
Israel’s domestic Counter-Terrorism (Anti-Terror) Law (2016).</p>
<p>The Israeli War Minister office claimed that the six groups were
“part of a network of organisations operating undercover in the
international arena” on behalf of the Popular Front for the Liberation
of Palestine (PFLP), a Marxist-Leninist Palestinian resistance group,
which was listed as a Foreign Terrorist Organisation in 1997 by the US
State Department.</p>
<p>The six groups are: Addameer, Al-Haq, Bisan Center for Research and
Development, Defence for Children International – Palestine (DCI-P), the
Union of Agricultural Work Committees (UAWC), and the Union of
Palestinian Women’s Committees (UPWC).</p>
<p>The Israeli military commander also outlawed all six groups under the
1945 Emergency (Defense) Regulations, declaring them “unlawful
associations”.</p>
<p>Several UN human rights experts, civil society and development
organizations, academics and more from around the world condemned, over
the past months, Israel’s designations, standing in solidarity with the
six Palestinian groups and increasing their support for the Palestinian
cause.</p>
<p>The European states said in the statement, “Accusations of terrorism
or links to terrorist groups must always be treated with the utmost
seriousness. The designations needed therefore to be assessed carefully
and extensively.”</p>
<p>“No substantial information was received from Israel that would
justify reviewing our policy towards the six Palestinian NGOs on the
basis of the Israeli decision to designate these NGOs as ‘terrorist
organizations’.”</p>
<p>“Should evidence be made available to the contrary, we would act accordingly,” the states stressed.</p>
<p>“In the absence of such evidence, we will continue our cooperation
and strong support for the civil society in the oPT. A free and strong
civil society is indispensable for promoting democratic values and for
the two-state solution,” the states concluded the statement.</p>
<p>The EU Commission recently also overturned a funding ban on two of
the groups — Al-Haq and the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights.</p>
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