EU funds multiple Israeli drone projects used in Gaza: Watchdogs

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: News websites
24 Mar 2024 08:59
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Watchdogs have found that the European Union is funding the development of several Israeli drones that have been appropriated for military use.

An Israeli occupation soldier launches a drone at the "separation fence" near the Gaza Strip, occupied Palestine, on January 9, 2024. (AP)

The European Union (EU) funded a drone technology used by Israeli occupation forces (IOF) in their genocidal war on Gaza, watchdogs Statwatch and Infromationstelle Militarisierung (IMI) found, according to Euronews.

The two monitors say that Xtend — a drone manufacturer reportedly supporting the IOF — received a research and development grant from the EU's Horizon Europe fund.

Pointing to the "supposed prohibition on EU funding for military and defense projects," the watchdogs said that a number of "Israeli companies and institutions received millions of euros for drone development in recent years."

In Xtend's case, the company received €50,000 from Horizon Europe, a multi-billion European research and innovation fund, to produce a study on optimizing its Skylord Xtender drone system and finding "strategic partners for the production and commercialization of the technology," Statewatch and IMI revealed.

The company went on to sign contracts with the United States Department of Defense in 2021 which involved the occupation's military.

Its CEO, Aviv Shapira, stated after October 7, 2023, that the company will redirect its capabilities to supporting Israeli occupation forces "100%". Xtend's drone has been used by multiple Israeli units involved in the genocidal war on Gaza with several saying that the aircraft helps them "perform accurate maneuvers in complex combat scenarios."

"Human rights groups have called on the EU to suspend its association agreement with Israel due to the disastrous effects of the latter’s assault on Gaza: huge civilian casualties, mass displacement, and the razing of infrastructure," said Statewatch Director Chris Jones.

"This report shows that the EU also needs to take a long, hard look at the companies it provides with research and development funding," he added.

"Public money should be used for the public good, not to support companies that profit from war and destruction," Jones emphasized.

The EU also funded several Israeli-linked projects for amounts totaling millions of euros, including funds that the criminal Israeli Security Ministry exploited. The Ministry participated in at least two EU-backed projects in recent years, receiving a total of €200,000 for its work.

One of the EU-funded projects that the Security Ministry was involved in, ResponDrone, was awarded almost €8 million for efforts to develop drone systems that would assist emergency workers. The other, UnderSec, was awarded a total of €6 million to develop systems "featuring multimodal sensors and robotic assets" that can be used in drone technology.

The drone could be easily appropriated for military use, according to the Statwatch-IMI report.

"Israel" has been launching a genocidal war on the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and the occupied West Bank for 169 days straight, besieging a population of more than 2 million people while murdering more than 32,142 Palestinians and wounding another 74,412, most of whom are women and children. This comes amid a deafening silence from international institutions and Western states that have taken proactive measures to end Israeli war crimes.