Khaled Osaily. خالد العسيلي رئيس بلدية الخيل السابق خالد العسيلي
Hebron Mayor KhaledOsaily met today at his office with the British Consul General Sir Vincent Fean as well as with Ms. Sandra Hamrouni, British Council Country Director and Mr. Michael Sansour, Project Officer. Mayor Osailybriefed his guests on general conditions and daily life in Hebron as well as on political conditions, joint cultural projects and means to support the local economy.
During the meeting, Osaily said that conditions in Hebron and throughout the OPTs go against agreements signed between the PNA and the Israeli government under international auspices. “The UK must exert pressure on Israel and provide support to the Palestinian leadership at the UN Security Council”, he said. He also highlighted the EU’s clear stance vis-à-vis the illegitimacy of settlements. “President Abbas believes in peace as a strategic option and works relentlessly towards achieving this goal. However, he is faced with intransigency by the extreme-right Israeli government which chose settlements over peace. As such, the international community must shoulder its responsibilities towards Palestinians: it must help achieve justice and support Palestinian rights guaranteed by all international covenants as well as by UN and UNSC resolutions”, he added.
Osaily also spoke about means to develop and strengthen economic conditions in Hebron in order to ensure that the city and its various sectors develop in a comprehensive and organized manner. This, he said, shall improve the daily life of citizens. “However, economic prosperity cannot be achieved without progress on the political level”, he added.
Both parties also discussed means to enhance economic ties, mainly in the field of commercial activity, as well as to provide facilities and advantages for Palestinian businessmen such as visas to the UK in order to stimulate economic relations and improve economic conditions in the OPTs.
It was also agreed to promote cultural cooperation through teaching English at the Municipality’s cultural centers as well as through projects in cooperation with the private sector aimed at providing higher education scholarships to Palestinian students.
At the end of the meeting, Sir Fean said that he now better understands conditions in Hebron. “I visited Hebron today in order to discuss the general political situation, means to enhance economic conditions as well as joint projects and programs. We shall always provide help to Palestinians to improve their daily lives. I hope that in the future we shall be able, through cooperation with Hebron Municipality and other partner institutions, to reach the humane goals we all seek to achieve”, he added.
