In a joint statement addressed to Greek PM Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Minister of Foreign Affairs Giorgos Gerapetritis, the leaders of the opposition parties: SYRIZA-PS, Greek Communist Party (KKE), New Left, and Course of Freedom, expressed deep concern over the unfolding humanitarian crisis in Palestine, brought about by the ongoing Israeli genocidal campaign.

Initiated by the KKE, the statement reads:

“The Palestinian people are living through a time of great suffering. The Israeli government is escalating its military operations in the Gaza Strip, with the stated aim of clearing it of its Palestinian population. This includes denying vital humanitarian aid, pushing the population to the brink of famine. The systematic destruction or elimination of a people constitutes genocide.

The UN has warned that thousands of infants in Gaza face death from malnutrition and lack of medicine. What is unfolding in Gaza – in plain sight of the international community – is a true genocide. To date, it has resulted in more than 61,000 deaths, 119,000 injuries, and hundreds of thousands displaced – the vast majority of whom are civilians.

Every day, we witness acts that amount to genocide, crimes against humanity, and war crimes. These actions violate international law, humanitarian law, and the principles of international criminal justice. They also fly in the face of global public opinion – including that of the Greek people, who have consistently stood in solidarity with the Palestinians.

The International Criminal Court – of which Greece is a founding member – has issued a warrant for the arrest of Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu for international crimes.”

The statement calls on the Greek government to change its stance, stressing that:

“In light of these developments, the Greek government has neither the political, legal, nor moral right to justify or support such actions. As a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, it has a duty to take active, urgent, and clear steps to halt the genocide against the Palestinian people, to address the humanitarian crisis, and to support the recognition of a Palestinian state based on the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”

The signatory parliamentary groups urge the PM and Minister of Foreign Affairs to take immediate action toward the following objectives:

  • An immediate ceasefire and a halt to all Israeli military operations in Gaza.
  • The immediate opening of humanitarian corridors to allow for the delivery of aid – water, food, medicine, medical supplies, and doctors – to address the severe famine affecting Palestinians.
  • A clear and unequivocal condemnation by the Greek government of the crimes committed by the State of Israel – against the Palestinian people, as well as against aid workers, volunteers, doctors, and nurses in humanitarian missions, including UN personnel.
  • The suspension of Greece’s military cooperation with Israel.
  • The implementation of the unanimous 2015 decision of the Greek Parliament, formally recognising the State of Palestine within the 1967 borders and with East Jerusalem as its capital.
  • An invitation by the Speaker of the Hellenic Parliament to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, to address the Greek Parliament and inform the Greek public about the situation in Gaza and the Palestinian territories as a whole.

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