Adama Bamba
17 Avril 2026 ¢Mise à jour: 17 Avril 2026
AA / Istanbul / Adama Bamba
French Euro-deputy Rima Hassan has pointed out a “fracture” between European public opinion and the policies carried out by the European Union institutions, calling for a revision of their position towards Israel.
In an interview with Anadolu, she stated that the European citizen initiative to demand the suspension of the association agreement between the European Union and Israel “reveals a fracture between public opinion and the policies being pursued by the European institutions.” She emphasized that this mobilization, which could reach “1.5 million European voices,” is “significant and must be heard.”
Rima Hassan recalled that some studies had already argued for “significant and consistent sanctions,” while denouncing the European Union’s inaction regarding the situation in Gaza. “Letting two years of genocide go by, a policy of colonization and occupation, apartheid, pogroms, terrorism,” she declared, suggesting that these facts could imply the responsibility of actors supporting Israel.
She identified two major challenges for the European Union: “the issue of credibility and consistency on the defense of human rights” and “the complicity with the crimes committed by Israel.” “And, in particular, since it is the most serious, it is the crime of genocide in Gaza,” she insisted.
She also warned of a loss of credibility for the European Union. “The European Union cannot position itself as an actor defending international law and human rights if it is not consistent on this issue,” she affirmed.
Finally, she mentioned the legal risk associated with supporting Israel: “If you provide arms to Israel, if Israel is recognized as guilty of genocide by international courts, all states will fall under this article as accomplice actors of this crime.”
Additionally, this statements come at a sensitive legal context for Rima Hassan. According to media reports, she has been subject to surveillance measures following an investigation opened on March 27 for “apology of terrorism,” linked to her social media posts.
These measures reportedly included geolocating her phone line and reconstructing her movements over several months, in France and abroad, based on requests to transport operators and administrative databases.
Questioned in the National Assembly, the Minister of the Interior reportedly shifted the responsibility for these practices to judicial authority, according to statements from the national coordinator of La France insoumise.
