Advocacy at the European Parliament to demand an end to EU complicity in the genocide in Palestine
On 3 December 2025, a political advocacy event at the European Parliament brought together Members of the European Parliament, human rights organisations and Palestinian voices to demand that the European Union assume its legal and political responsibilities in the face of the genocide of the Palestinian people. The event concluded with the sending of a letter to the EU High Representative calling for concrete measures to put an end to a form of complicity that, they warn, can no longer be justified as inaction.
The organisations NOVACT, SUDS, Paz con Dignidad, Associació Hèlia, Mundubat and Irídia organised the event EU: End Your Complicity in the Israeli Genocide Against the Palestinian People at the European Parliament. The initiative brought together MEPs, Palestinian human rights organisations and international experts to demand that the EU take responsibility for its legal and political obligations in the face of the genocide of the Palestinian people.
The event concluded with the sending of a letter signed by more than 30 Members of the European Parliament to the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. The letter denounces that, after more than 790 days of genocide, European inaction in the face of Israel’s grave human rights violations constitutes a form of complicity that must come to an immediate end.
The parliamentary initiative is led by Jaume Asens (Greens/EFA), with the support, among others, of Marc Botenga (The Left), Mélissa Camara (Greens/EFA), Irene Montero (The Left) and Cecilia Strada (S&D).
Palestinian voices confronting European silence
The event featured two panels. The first, focused on Israeli violence in Palestine, gave direct voice to Palestinian human rights organisations criminalised by Israel, including Al-Mezan, PCHR and Al-Haq. These organisations denounced the systematic destruction of Gaza, the use of sexual violence as a weapon of war, deliberate attacks on journalists and the repression of Palestinian civil society.
Speakers also highlighted the criminalisation of other organisations such as Addameer, DCI-P, Bisan, HWC and UAWC, whose offices had been raided and equipment confiscated by the Israeli army just one day before the event.
Issam Younis (Al-Mezan) stated:
“The key concept in the context of Palestine is accountability. The system kills the victim and then blames them. But we will not give up our struggle until there is justice.”
Hamdi Shaqqura (PCHR) warned:
“In more than 30 years of documenting human rights, I have never seen the levels of sexual torture that we are documenting today. And yet, the EU has not reacted.”
Zainah Al-Haroun (Al-Haq) added:
“Israel not only pays no price for its crimes, it is rewarded. Impunity is the engine of the system.”
European responsibilities and political action
The second panel, EU Responsibilities and Policy Action, addressed the European Union’s direct responsibility and the political and legal tools at its disposal to end its complicity with Israel.
International lawyer Shahd Hammouri was unequivocal:
“The EU should have suspended arms trade with Israel from day one. When we say that the liberation of Palestine concerns us all, we are talking about building strong movements based on justice to confront supremacism, elitism and fascism.”
Wesam Ahmed identified the core issue:
“The elephant in the room is colonialism. International law has been applied with a double standard, and exceptionalism towards Israel is eroding democratic values within Europe.”
Researcher Lurdes Vidal denounced the EU’s passive — yet complicit — role:
“There is no peace process, only the continuation of a colonial plan. The EU pays the bill for Israel’s actions with public money and is shrinking the space for civil society mobilising for Palestine.”
Thirteen political commitments on the table
The letter sent to the EU High Representative outlines 13 political commitments agreed between MEPs and civil society organisations, including:
- The suspension of the EU–Israel Association Agreement.
- A comprehensive arms embargo on Israel in line with the Arms Trade Treaty.
- Sanctions against companies operating in Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory, all considered illegal under international law.
- The suspension of energy imports and financial services linked to Israel.
- The effective implementation of the decisions of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the arrest warrants issued by the International Criminal Court (ICC).
MEPs also condemn US sanctions against the ICC and demand a clear EU response to the Israeli raid on UAWC offices and the systematic criminalisation of Palestinian organisations.
As Jaume Asens concluded during the closing of the event:
“Hope is perseverance. We cannot give up on calling things by their name: there are political responsibilities and there are criminal ones. Europe’s failure on Palestine is also a failure of memory.”
