
The Knesset delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for the Mediterranean (PA-UfM) headed by Erel Margalit (Zionist Union) successfully cancelled a Palestinian Arab proposed amendment for the Union which could have had practical ramifications on the Union’s plans for action.
The amendment submitted by the Palestinian Arabs sought to place the blame for the situation in Gaza on “the occupation,” “settlements,” and the Israeli blockade on the Gaza Strip.
MK Margalit, who presented a plan for cooperation among countries in the region, said: “This is a victory for initiative over fear mongering. The economic cooperation that we presented at the assembly brought the European Parliament to calculate a new path.” Margalit called on members of the European Parliament “to join initiatives advancing peace, instead of ones distancing peace.”
The PA representative, Zohir Bandoka, attacked Israel at the Foreign Affairs and Security Committee of the assembly, asserting that it tramples the human rights of Palestinian Arabs. “We want a state, we want to be free and not dependent on the kindnesses of Israel,” he said. He was cut off by the Chairman of the Committee, Renato Soru from Italy.
Political Adviser to the Knesset Oded Ben-Hur, who took part in the efforts, said that the assembly is meant to consolidate cooperation between countries in the region, including Israel and Arab countries, on various subjects including innovation, energy, and agriculture.