The European Union (EU) is continuing to provide financial aid to the Palestinians, but it is imposing stricter conditions in the wake of the Gaza war. According to Vice Commission President Valdis Dombrovskis, an audit report showed no indication that EU money had flowed directly or indirectly to the radical Islamic Hamas. However, Brussels wants to check more closely in the future whether recipients of the money incite hatred, violence, or anti-Semitism.

The EU put its support for the Palestinians to the test following the brutal Hamas attack on Israel on October 7th, which left 1,200 dead and around 240 abducted. The EU Commission submitted its Report on aid amounting to 331 million euros for the current year. No European funds went to the radical Islamic Hamas, but with 8 million euros, there is a suspicion that the recipients may have taken part in hate speech and “glorification of terror”. Brussels demanded “further information” from local partners about a further 39 million euros.

Aid worth 75 million euros for the Gaza Strip was classified as “unfeasible” and should be reallocated. The EU sees itself as the largest supporter of the Palestinians worldwide. In total, the aid in the period 2021 to 2024 will amount to almost 1.2 billion euros. At the same time, humanitarian aid was not affected by the review. Germany and other member states had also put their national aid to