Jerusalem, 20 October 2010
 
Statement by the EU Representatives to the Palestinian Authority and the EU Consul Generals in Jerusalem on the sentence of Abdallah Abu Rahma:   
 
"The EU Representatives to the Palestinian Authority and the EU Consul Generals in Jerusalem are concerned by the 12 months sentence to prison of Abdallah Abu Rahma on 11 October by an Israeli military court. The EU considers Abdallah Abu Rahma a human rights defender who has protested in a peaceful manner against the route of the Israeli separation barrier through his village of Bil'in.
 
The EU considers the route of the barrier where it is built on Palestinian land to be illegal. The EU supports the key role of human rights defenders in promoting and furthering of human rights. The EU Member States and the EU Representative's office have followed this case closely, attending all of Abdallah Abu Rahma's hearings. In this context, as already expressed in a spokesperson's statement of High Representative Catherine Ashton on 25 August, we regret the sentence of Abdallah Abu Rahma." 
 
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