European Parliament Condemns Hamas’ Attacks Against Israel

"In the resolution adopted on Thursday with 500 votes in favour, 21 against and 24 abstentions, MEPs strongly condemn the brutal attacks, express their support to Israel and its people and underline the need to 'eliminate the terrorist organisation Hamas,'" the press release read.

In the resolution, the European Parliament members express "serious concern over the rapidly deteriorating situation in the Gaza Strip," and call for differentiating "Palestinian people and their legitimate aspirations" from the Hamas group, which the resolution defines as "terrorist."

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In the final version of the resolution, the members of the European Parliament called for a "humanitarian pause," as the attacks from both sides pose a threat of "reinforcing a cycle of violence in the region," which is likely to lead to never-ending deaths of civilians, including medical workers and journalists.

"MEPs therefore call for a 'humanitarian pause' of the fighting and stress that attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure, including UN workers, medical workers and journalists, is a serious violation of international law," the resolution read.

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The resolution also advocates for an Israel-Palestine solution based on the 1967 lines with two neighboring countries living in peace and following the democracy principles, and calls on the European countries to launch an initiative for peaceful settlement of the conflict.

"[The resolution] reiterates its unwavering support for a negotiated two-state solution on the basis of the 1967 lines with two sovereign, democratic states living side by side in peace and guaranteed security, with Jerusalem as the capital of both states, and in full respect of international law; encourages the European External Action Service and the Member States to take a European initiative to put the two-state solution back on track; emphasises the absolute necessity of immediately relaunching the peace process," the document read.

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The EP is also calling for immediate release of the hostages held in Gaza saying that "this is the worst massacre of human beings on the basis of Jewish identity since the Holocaust."

The parliament recognizes "Israel’s right to self-defence," which is provided for in international law, however, the parliament underscores that Israel’s actions "must therefore strictly comply with international law."

The parliament is calling for inclusion of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps on the EU list of terrorist organizations and for a "thorough investigation into the role of Iran, as well as other countries such as Qatar and Russia, in financing and supporting terrorism in the region."

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According to the EP, the Commission and the Council have to "initiate de-escalation measures aimed at averting the potential escalation of current tensions along the Israel-Lebanon border into a full-scale conflict."

On October 7, Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise large-scale rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip and breached the border, killing and seizing people in neighboring Israeli communities. Israel launched retaliatory strikes and ordered a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to more than 2 million people, cutting off supplies of water, food and fuel. The escalation of the conflict has resulted in thousands of people killed and injured on both sides.