16/05/2025 Political Affairs and Democracy
PACE's rapporteur on the situation in the Middle East, Dora Bakoyannis (Greece, EPP/CD), made the following statement today:
"'He who has a why to live can bear almost any how,' wrote Nietzsche. In the case of Gaza, however, that 'how' has become unbearable. For all of us who fervently support a safe and prosperous State of Israel, what is happening in the Gaza Strip today feels like a slap in the face.
The time for a moral reckoning over the treatment of Palestinians has come — and it is long overdue. No cause, no matter how just or pure, can ever justify every means. The mass killing of children and unarmed civilians, the deliberate starvation, and the relentless pain and humiliation inflicted upon Palestinians in Gaza must end.
It takes a smart and brave nation to recognise when its actions are causing more harm than good. What is unfolding in Gaza helps no-one. On the contrary, it recklessly endangers the lives of the remaining hostages and sows the seeds for the next Hamas.
The Israeli nation is indeed smart and brave enough to confront this truth — and to put an end to this dark and tragic chapter of human history."