Gaza: EU sources, towards training 3,000 Palestinian police officers

Brussels, 19 Nov. (LaPresse) – “In the West Bank, there is already an EU mission to support the training of police forces, Euopol Copps, which essentially trains instructors for the Palestinian police. There is a need, and there will continue to be a need, to stabilise Gaza with a strong police force, so that the EU can do so through this mission. This would mean that this mission will grow to the point where it can train at least 3,000 police officers.” This was stated by a senior EU official ahead of tomorrow’s meeting of the donor group for Palestine. “There are 7,000 police officers in Gaza, who are still paid by the Palestinian National Authority, and among them, many are retired or no longer able to do their job, but about 3,000 could be trained,” she explains.