"Who will defend the oppressed?" Palestinian children protest against the demolition of their homes by Hamas. Source: Facebook page of @Rafahbland

Statement by Belgian MFA condemning demolition of illegally built property in Jerusalem. Source: Twitter

BFOI criticises the Belgian Foreign Ministry for its "double standards" in using Palestinians to "further its own extremist anti-Israel ideology".

BRUSSELS, BELGIUM, January 25, 2022 /EINPresswire.com/ -- A recent tweet from the Twitter account of the Belgian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that "Belgium condemns Israeli demolition s and evictions". This was in response, as the tweet indicated, to the demolition of a property in the Sheikh Jarrah district of Jerusalem. The tweet was 'liked' by Belgian minister Meryame Kitir and Belgium's embassy in Israel, led by ambassador Jean-Luc Bodson.

The property in question was a commercial business and residence that, according to a statement by Israeli NGO The International Legal Forum (ILF), had been illegally built by the Salihiya family on land to which they had no legal title, and for which they had refused to pay the requisite rent. The land is designated by the Jerusalem municipal authorities as public land, upon which schools for children with special needs are slated to be built.

The ILF statement continues "As in most countries, local authorities are responsible for enforcing building and planning laws and, where someone builds illegally on public land, they will be evicted according to law. It is simply preposterous to accuse Israel of 'violating international humanitarian law', as some in the diplomatic sphere have done, when this is a local property dispute".

A spokesperson for Belgian Friends of Israel (BFOI) said "We fully agree with the statement by the ILF. The Belgian Foreign Ministry showed a worrying lack of discernment and betrayed its ideological prejudice by condemning due legal process in a democratic state. Belgium is not well placed to criticise: The Economist's global democracy index for 2020 placed Israel higher than Belgium, with Israel becoming more democratic whilst Belgium is becoming less so."

One year ago, Hamas forcibly expelled Palestinians from their homes near the Rafah crossing in southern Gaza. A detailed report by AL Monitor's Rasha Abou Jalal revealed that "23 families that have lived in and cultivated this area of land for decades were surprised by bulldozers coming to put an end to their presence in the area, claiming the lands are government-owned. The Palestinian Land Authority affiliated with Hamas in the Gaza Strip issued a decision a few days before to expropriate these lands with the aim to expand the Rafah land crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt for commercial purposes."

The BFOI spokesperson continued "There was not one word from the Belgian Foreign Ministry about the forcible displacement of 23 Palestinian families by the terrorist organisation Hamas. So why is it that Belgium MFA only ever condemns Israel and never Palestinians? It is clear that our Foreign Ministry is infected with a malign prejudice against Israel which demonises everything Israeli whilst sanitising all things Palestinian. Such a biased modus operandi uses Palestinians to further the ministry's own extremist anti-Israel ideology."

"Such double standards reveals the authors - and supporters - of the condemnation to be shameless hypocrites" the BFOI statement concluded.

Celia De Coster
BFOI
+32 493 03 86 78
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