13/12/2023 Political Affairs and Democracy
At its meeting in Paris, the Political Committee “unequivocally and in the strongest possible terms" condemned the barbaric attack conducted by Hamas and other militia groups against Israel on 7 October 2023, acts which “cannot be justified on any grounds whatsoever”. The parliamentarians expressed their support for Israel in the face of “the most brutal terrorist attack of its history”, affirming its right to self-defence.
The draft resolution adopted by the committee, based on the report by Piero Fassino (Italy, SOC), calls for the immediate and unconditional release of the hostages and an immediate and extended ceasefire to allow “full, rapid, safe and unhindered access to humanitarian assistance for the population in Gaza”.
The parliamentarians also voiced their dismay at “the enormous number of innocent casualties in the Gaza Strip” because, as Mr Fassino's report points out, Israel's military response to Hamas has resulted in the loss of thousands of lives, especially children, massive displacement and widespread destruction of civilian objects and infrastructure in Gaza.
The committee also stressed the need for the parties to the hostilities to strictly abide by international law and international humanitarian law, in line with the principles of distinction, necessity, proportionality and precaution.
Having noted the exacerbation of settler violence in the West Bank in recent weeks, the committee also underlined that the Israeli authorities must urgently and resolutely commit themselves to preventing settler violence and to refraining from building new settlements, as well as from expanding old ones.
Finally, the parliamentarians called for the resumption of peace negotiations based on a two-State solution, with the involvement of relevant stakeholders and the support of the international community, to achieve a just and lasting peace in the region. In this context, PACE should step up its efforts to promote dialogue between the Knesset, the Palestinian National Council and parliaments of Council of Europe member states.