Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
The European Commission in Brussels published a call for proposals aimed at strengthening EU security by protecting public spaces, including specifically protecting Jewish places of worship. The total budget for the call is €30 million, funded by the Internal Security Fund (ISF). Applications can be submitted between February 8 and April 4, 2024.
The call will fund projects aimed at improving the overall security of public places with a focus on six different priorities: places of worship for all faiths, Jewish houses of worship, chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear threats, and trafficking in firearms, and explosives. Detection dogs and drones. A European statement stated that in light of the alarming escalation of anti-Semitic incidents across the European Union, following the heinous terrorist attack launched by Hamas on Israel on October 7, 2023, the Commission allocated 5 million euros from the total budget exclusively to projects Protecting Jewish places of worship, this was stated in the statement issued by the European Commission entitled “No Place for Hate: Europe United Against Hate.”
“It is unacceptable that Jews in Europe are once again living in fear 78 years after the end of the Holocaust,” said Commission Vice-President for Promoting our European Way of Life, Margaritis Schinas, in line with the EU Strategy 2021 on combating anti-Semitism and promoting Jewish life. They feel the need to hide their identity. Security is the fundamental right of all Europeans and an essential condition for the flourishing of Jewish life. Through this call, the European Union will support national authorities in ensuring the security of Jewish communities and all citizens.
The security of everyone living in Europe is a priority for UNHCR. It is an essential element for strengthening trust and cohesion in our societies. The Commission has already taken concrete actions to strengthen the protection of public spaces and tackle extremism, also through the Extremism Awareness Network and the EU Internet Forum. Europol's mandate has also been strengthened so that the agency can better support member states when it comes to ensuring security. The Commission also adopted a regulation preventing the publication of terrorist content online, ensuring that any terrorist content is removed within a maximum period of one hour.
Projects funded under these priorities will support ongoing work to achieve the objectives of several EU action plans and strategies.