Posted 9:35 AM by Tal G
Translated from yesterday's Yediot Ahronot(Hebrew). Note that the original interview was probably conducted in English:

I'm fed up with funding Arafat's terror

by Ronen Bergman

"I need Zimeray's investigative committee like a hole in the head". That's how Chris Patten, the British diplomat, former governor of Hong Kong, and current EU external affairs commissioner - started [a speech] last week.

Each week Patten dedicates much time to considerations and sharp attacks against his main opponent of these days - the French Socialist parliamentarian and lawyer Francois Zimeray. It's always the same topic that the two are disputing: the Palestinian Authority - each week from a different angle.

A visitor from another planet reviewing the minutes of the most recent meetings of the EU's Finance and External Affairs committees would be lead to the conclusion that the only places on the planet {ie. outside the EU] are Israel and the Palestinian Authority. In the most recent meeting, for example, out of 2 hours there were one hour and fifty minutes devoted to the topic.

Since the outbreak of the intifada, Zimeray has stood almost alone in the Israel's most difficult diplomatic arena - the EU. Israel's few supporters have gradually abandoned him, and only he is left in the battle that appears - from outside at least - to be Sisyphean and futile. Most European states and institutions take a firm pro-Palestinian stance, and don't allow facts to confuse them or alter their stance.

Between Ethics and Terror

This time the European Parliament is experiencing Zimeray's request to immediately establish a special committee of investigation, which will attempt to locate the cash that the EU has transferred to the Palestinian Authority - about 4 billion dollars worth since the PA's establishment.

Zimeray does not intend to give up. Patten, the official overseeing the transfer of funds [to the PA] and the one being accused [by Zimeray], said he has no intention to address the issue. Regardless, said [Patten], Zimeray only obtained 50 of the 172 signatures necessary to bring the issue up for a vote before the full parliament. When it became clear that Zimeray, with the assistance of his hard-working assistant Shira Ansky (a personally imported Israeli), had actually obtained 110 signatures, [Patten] changed tactics and angrily announced that he would regard the establishment of an investigative committee as a vote of non-confidence on himself and his performance.

But Zimeray reiterated his demand. "I can't sleep at night and I'm struck with nausea due to the EU's behaviour. Why must I, and other taxpayers in the European community be forced to finance Arafat's terror? And if the news from last week is correct, there's also no reason that I should be paying the fees of Yossi Ginosar".

"What I've been talking about all this time has [now] become apparent to everyone. I want to know which funds went to the PA's Swiss bank account, and why European cash - which was supposed to benefit the Palestinian people, who are suffering from hunger and malnutrition - was secretly moved back to Europe."

"Patten and I have different definitions of the term 'moral'. Europe, in my opinion, has lost its [sense of] morality in its approach to the conflict in the Middle East. It's impossible to justify terror by using the term 'occupation'. Published just now was a collection of Albert Camus' essays on terror. Camus correctly says that there's nothing in the world that permits apologetics in relation to acts of terror and killings of innocent citizens. The European Parliament is, I'm sorry to say, attempting to do just that."

Setting up an investigative committee is an unusual action in the European Parliament. Zimeray knows this, as does Patten. That's the reason that [Patten] with a most senior and central role [in the Parliament] extends himself to make personal connections with many Parliamentarians in order to dissuade them from signing Zimeray's petition. The assumption of [Patten's] work is that in closed conversations it's easy to say "No" to the petition - but when the issue arises for debate it's hard for the representatives to vote against a request to investigate suspicious and [potentially] corrupt transfers of funds. Parliamentarians, regardless of their personal views, have constituents who pay taxes.

I pay their salaries

This week, in a special interview with Yediot Ahronot during a short trip to Israel, Zimeray said that he came to the conclusion that there was no downside [minus] to setting up a broad investigative commission, because all other efforts to to get detailed information, or to get [specific] institutions to do the investigative work, simply failed. "The EU continues to transfer funds to the Palestinian Authority without constraints and without the necessary transparency.

"If it weren't my money, I wouldn't have the right to make inquiries to the PA, but I'm the one who pays salaries to the police and the teachers. I want to ensure that the policeman isn't involved in terror, and that the teacher isn't spreading anti-Jewish and anti-semitic hatred or giving lectures that support suicide bombings."

Zimeray is a leftist Socialist, who maintains more than a bit of criticism for various actions of the Israeli government. He also says that he is not a big admirer of Prime Minister Sharon - but he demands that the Palestinians and Israel receive "value-equal" treatment. The situation on the ground, he says, is far from this. Israel's [diplomatic] position is deteriorating - amidst strategic damages [to its diplomatic position]. Things have reached the point where - for the present only in private - some Parliament members say that the establishment of the state of Israel was a historic error.

"The obvious problem first of all is antisemitism, which has roots in Europe for 2000 years and keeps coming up from underground. Since the Vatican announced that the Jews did not kill Jesus, noone can raise that claim. But they can say that Israel kills children in Bethlehem - and the connection is clear to everyone.

"But, were it only that I could explain it all through the prism of the resurrection of antisemitism. To my dismay, we're talking about something much deeper and more complicated. The anti-semites are a minority among those who condemn Israel. The problem is that with each meeting, the European Parliament progresses further and further in its anti-Israeli stance.

"One of the harshest examples is the cancellation of the agreements of economic cooperation between the EU and Israel. We're not talking about a ritual or symbolic step, design to demonstrate solidarity with the Palestinians. It's a substantive sanction and a real attempt to negatively impact daily life in Israel.

"Cooperation agreements deal with numerous fields including economics, taxes, research, medicine and others. With due respect to the US, Europe is Israel's #1 trading partner. And against whom have the sanction been applied til today? Serbia, Nigeria, Sudan and Togo? They signed economic cooperative agreements with Syria and that major democracy Libya. Just this week they signed also with Lebanon ...

Europe's Complexes

"The Europeans don't understand Israel. In the modern and shallow world it's difficult to explain complicated issues. If you don't have a clear interest to acquire a deep understanding of a specific subject, it's easy to remain superficial and accept the picture presented to you by the media. And in that arena Israel loses.

"We, the Europeans, endure comparable feelings of guilt regarding the Jews and regarding the Arabs. On the one hand the Holocaust and the fact that European nations were complicit in it or didn't do enough to prevent it.

"On the other hand, for us it's easy to think that the victims of yesterday are the criminals of today. If those who suffered from today cause the same suffering to other people, maybe we're not so wicked.

"It's important to pay attention to the terminology that they use in Europe regarding the Middle East conflict and where the words come from. This conflict causes us to recall our history... to the Portuguese: Angola, to the Belgians: Congo, to the French: Algeria

[to be continued].