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The Occupation of Palestinian territories since 1967: an analysis of Europe's role

50+ years of Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories have not existed in a vacuum. While much of the scholarly attention has scrutinized dynamics on the ground, the international context within which the occupation has persisted deserves equal scrutiny beyond the traditional reference to US foreign policy, because the sustainability of regional phenomena depends also on the international context within which they are embedded. This forum focuses on European actors and how they have interacted with the occupation, through an analysis of legal, political and socio-economic practices. It shows that the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has been played out not only in the foreign policies of European countries and organizations, but also and increasingly in their domestic politics, policies and debates. The aim of this brief introduction is to highlight the main points and anticipate some of the key themes that weave the collection together, in terms of substance and scope. First, an analysis of the occupation’s international context requires an engagement with international law, which might sound painful to the ears of political scientists or policymakers, but at times of global contestation of the liberal order it is essential to remind ourselves how internationally agreed principles apply to this specific instance. This collection is based on the premise that all European countries have agreed that Israel is an occupying power, a position that the state of Israel formally rejects but all articles included here explore. In fact, as argued by the contribution of the UN Special Rapporteur, Michael Lynk, international law presents us with a paradox. While much of it has developed in response to the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories, it has had seemingly little direct impact on the conflict itself. This points to a potential avenue for the Europeans’ action, if they are to be true to their hard-won liberal sensibilities and contribute to a compassionate resolution of the Arab-Israeli conflict, namely to re-assess the legality of Israel’s occupant status and give meaning to law through their actions. Moreover, international law has evolved and has codified the need for third parties to avoid de facto recognizing illegal situations. Azarova shows how this is particularly important for the European Union (EU), as it needs to ensure consistency between international law, EU law and domestic implementation within member states of EU related rules. The revisions to EU-Israeli relations that the EU has promoted in recent years should be read (also) in this light. Recognition is a theme that marks the most visible European action in current times, namely