The European
Parliament building
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
The
European Parliament on Thursday voted, for the first time ever, to
condemn Hamas for its acts of terrorism and use of human shields.
The motion, titled, "Gaza Strip: prevent
any further escalation of violence," was passed by an overwhelming
majority of 524 in favor to 30 against, with 92 abstentions.
The members of the European Parliament "condemn Hamas for instigating violence
and for its terrorist activities on the Israel-Gaza border and call on
all parties involved to respect the human rights of detainees and
prisoners," a statement posted on the parliament's website said.
"The European Parliament appeals to all
protesters in Gaza to refrain from using rhetoric that instigates
violence and to prevent the unnecessary loss of lives. It also urges
Israel to address its territorial concerns with proportionate measures."
The statement further urged "Israel and
Palestine to use nonviolent means and respect human rights, in order to
prevent further deaths and achieve a peaceful two-state solution."
It criticized Israel, saying MEPs "appeal
for an immediate and unconditional end to the blockade and closure of
the Gaza Strip, to facilitate efforts to remedy the humanitarian crisis
there."
The three-page resolution noted that Hamas
is designated as a terrorist organization by the European Union and,
focusing largely on recent violent border riots, said parliament
"strongly condemns the continuous tactic of Hamas to use civilians for
the purpose of shielding terrorist activities. … Hamas seems to aim at
escalating tensions."
The European Parliament also denounced the terrorist group's abuse of the population under its rule.
"Hamas continues to keep the population
under control and pressure in the Gaza Strip, which remains a hub of
internationally recognized terrorist organizations," the motion said,
further condemning Hamas for restricting "basic freedoms, including of
association and expression."
While the European Parliament condemned the
IDF's use of live fire in response to the border riots, it acknowledged
"Israel's security challenges and the need to protect its territory and
borders while using proportionate means," saying it "condemns the
terror attacks of Hamas and other militant groups against Israel from
the Gaza Strip, including the firing of rockets, infiltrations into
Israeli territory, and the building of tunnels."
The European Parliament urged the IDF to
curb its uses of crowd control measures and live fire, saying it "calls
for utmost restraint and underlines that the priority must be to avoid
any further escalation of violence and loss of life; expresses its
regret of the loss of lives; condemns the killings and injuries of
innocent Palestinian demonstrators in the Gaza Strip over the past three
weeks and urges the IDF to refrain from using lethal force against
unarmed protesters."
The motion cautioned that "intentional use
of lethal force against protesters who do not pose an imminent threat to
life or serious injury violates international human rights law and in
the context of occupation is a serious breach of the Fourth Geneva
Convention."
The European Parliament's statement also urged the return of all Israelis held captive in Gaza by Hamas.
The terrorist group is believed to hold the
bodies of Staff Sgt. Oron Shaul and Lt. Hadar Goldin, who were killed
in the Gaza Strip in separate battles during Operation Protective Edge
in the summer of 2014. Ethiopian Israeli Avera Mengistu and Bedouin
Hisham al-Sayed, both suffering from mental health issues, crossed into
Gaza voluntarily in 2014 and 2015 and are believed to have been captured
by Hamas. A fifth Israeli, Jumaa Abu Ghanima, crossed the border into
Gaza in 2016, and his fate remains unknown.
The American Jewish Committee's Transatlantic Institute lauded the unusually balanced EU resolution.
"The AJC Transatlantic Institute praises
the European Parliament for condemning Hamas for the war crimes it
committed during the recent violent protests," the group said in a
statement on its website.
It criticized the EU legislator for urging
an "unconditional" end to Israel's maritime blockade on the Hamas-ruled
territory, imposed as part of the Jewish state's counterterrorism
efforts.
"Calling for the 'unconditional' end to
Israel's targeted blockade is at this time – unfortunately – neither
realistic nor an even remotely reasonable proposal," said Daniel
Schwammenthal, director of AJC's EU office.
"Gaza is still ruled by the same Islamist
terror group, Hamas, which seeks the destruction of the Jewish state.
Instead of constructing schools and hospitals to improve the lives of
ordinary Palestinians, Hamas uses scarce resources to build and fire
rockets at Israeli civilians and to advance its network of terror
tunnels infiltrating into Israeli communities," Schwammenthal said.
