Hebron Mayor Khaled Osaily met on the 10th of May at Hebron Municipality with Mr. Giampaolo Cantini, Consul General of Italy. The meeting discussed issues relating to joint cooperation, building new partnerships with Italian municipalities and enhancing commercial cooperation. Osaily also briefed his guest on conditions in Hebron and attempts by settlers to build a new settler road in the city.

The meeting was attended by Mr. Paolo Ricini, Head of the Association of Italian Municipalities, Hanna Pappalardo, Vice Consul General, Mr. Antonio Laroca, Head of the Municipal Support and Development Program at the Italian Cooperation Agency, Messrs. Kamal Al Dweik, AbdelAziz Shkeir and Ishaq Al Natsheh from Hebron’s Municipal Council, Mr. Tawfiq Arafeh, Hebron City Engineer, Mr. Yasser Al Dweik, Executive Director of the Higher Council for Solid Waste Management, Mr. Allam Al Ashhab, Director of the Municipality’s Economic Development Section and Mr. Imad Hamdan, Director of Hebron Rehabilitation Committee.

Osaily started the meeting by talking about the political situation in Hebron and hardships in the Old City caused by occupation authorities and settlers alike. He touched on Israeli violations against Al Ibrahimi Mosque in particular and Palestinians in general, including the continuous closure of Al Shuhada Street and Israeli checkpoints which have made more than 40 000 people prisoners in the southern part of the city. Osaily highlighted one grave violation reflected in attempts by Israeli settlers to build a new settler road on Palestinian land to link Kiryat Arba and Kharsina settlements. He called for external intervention to exert pressure on the Israeli government to force it to put an end to its own transgressions and well as to violations committed by settlers.

Osaily then spoke about economic conditions in Hebron. He highlighted commercial ties between local businessmen and their Italian counterparts, stressed on cooperation with Italian universities and institutes and spoke about the local industry’s dependence on Italian-made machines. He also spoke about the obstacles that hinder the growth of the Palestinian economy due to Israeli barriers in the fields of agriculture and industry and restrictions on the free movement of individuals and goods.

Speaking about cooperation and Italian support to Hebron, Osaily said: “Friendship and cooperation exist between Hebron and Italian municipalities and regions. This fruitful cooperation is clearly reflected in the following projects: the Remote Control Unit for the Hebron Water Network, the Water and Sanitation Utility Project and the Capacity Building of Human Resources Project. Such projects are met with great appreciation of Italy’s support which is not only financial or technical. The Italian government has stood by Palestinians and supported their cause and rights as a people seeking peace under the guidance of a leadership that chose peace as a strategic goal but has found no genuine Israeli counterpart with whom to work to achieve this goal. We as Palestinians appreciate and respect this Italian stance that is in favor of justice”.

Mr. Cantini underlined his country’s support of the two-state solution, the creation of a Palestinian State on the 1967 borders and putting an end to settlements which it judges as illegitimate. Italy shall continue to provide support to Palestinians so that they can enjoy a decent life, he said. Mr. Cantini also expressed his joy at the good relations and cooperation that exist between Italian municipalities and Hebron Municipality which has led to many achievements. He called for more cooperation and underlined Italy’s interest in supporting and developing the Palestinian Private Sector to help limit unemployment and create new job opportunities.

At the end of the meeting, and prior to a visit to several joint projects, Osaily presented his guest with gifts from the city’s handicrafts industry as well as with a book on Hebron’s ancient history.