Federica Mogherini, the European Union’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, announced that the body will scrutinise the new Palestinian textbooks for content that incites hate and violence, out of concern that EU aid funds are being used to promote hatred.
The announcement follows an investigation and campaign by IMPACT-se (Institute for Monitoring Peace and Cultural Tolerance in School Education). They found that the new Palestinian textbooks, releases in September 2018, are even more radical than previous editions, with hundreds of examples of extremism encouraging Jihad, violence, demonisation and incitement against Israel and Jews.
The hateful content was found to be methodical and appeared in all subjects including mathematics, physics, biology, etc. One book for first graders features an image of a child smiling alongside “apostates” burning in hell.
The results of IMPACT-se’s investigation were shown to senior European officials and delegates at the EU Parliament.
In response to an official inquiry from a delegate, Mogherini confirmed that the that the EU will carry out an academic study of Palestinian learning materials and that funds were allocated for that purpose in the 2019 budget. The scrutiny is to be conducted by an independent, internationally respected research institution.
The purpose of the investigation is to “identify possible incitement to hate and violence and non-compliance with UNESCO standards regarding peace and tolerance in education,” Mogherini said. “Incitement to violence is incompatible with the promotion of the two-state solution, and greatly exacerbates the lack of trust between the communities.”
Most European Union funds to the Palestinians, some 360 million euros, are for the Palestinian Education Ministry. The EU also donated $178 million to UNRWA and much of that is used to fund their schools which also teach the PA curriculum.