R1: Resolution for a just and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and lasting peace in the Middle East

At the FYEG General Assembly in August 2024, FYEG, for the first time in its
history, adopted a common position on Israel and Palestine and its people's
right to their self-determination named Resolution for Peace and Justice in
Palestine and Israel. This resolution was used as the basis for the updated
unified position of the European Green Party in their congress in December 2024.
The alignment of the Greens with international law, human rights, and self-
determination is common across the continent, and the acknowledgement of the
differences of the members of our political family does not prevent us from a
common understanding of what the role of the EU, European states, and the
international community must be to withdraw from active support of destruction
and become a reliable ally for establishing justice and peace in the Middle
East. With this text, we build on last year’s resolution, avoiding repetition
where relevant, to construct a common Young Green understanding of our vision
for the future of peace and prosperity for the Palestinian and Israeli peoples
in their self-determination.

As the IDF's devastating targeted murder of Palestinians continues, which the
overwhelming majority of our member organisations consider to be an ongoing
genocide, while others consider that this statement needs to be ruled by an
international court, we stress our strong condemnation of the horrendous war
crimes mentioned in this and the previous resolution.

Since the last General Assembly, the International Criminal Court (ICC) has
issued arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, former
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas leader Mohammed Diab Ibrahim
Al-Masri for war crimes and crimes against humanity. FYEG welcomes the decision
of the Court, and strongly calls on the EU, its member states, other European
States, and the international community to uphold the enforcement of these and
other ICC warrants in order to maintain the principles of international law.
Regimes that refuse to enforce ICC arrest warrants and take their countries out
of the ICC to protect war criminals must be condemned, and consideration of
potential proportional responses by our governments and the EU.

Since our last resolution, both parties had implemented a ceasefire in Gaza. The
ceasefire was fragile and under a constant threat of being broken, especially by
far-right Israeli politicians. The start of the ceasefire was postponed, which
resulted in an additional nineteen killed Palestinians and the wounding of
thirty-six by the IDF. During the two-month-long ceasefire, thousands of people
were able to return, with the majority of them finding their homes and the
infrastructure serving their basic needs destroyed. Some of the Israeli hostages
kidnapped by Hamas were liberated; we welcome their liberation and reiterate our
call for the immediate and unconditional release of the hostages, and condemn
the bad conditions of captivity they endured. Similarly, some Palestinians who
were arbitrarily detained by Israel without charges or fair trials were also
freed; we welcome their liberation and reiterate our call for the liberation of
the rest of the arbitrarily detained Palestinians, particularly minors.

We condemn the IDF, following the order of the Israeli government, for killing
more than fifty thousand people in Gaza alone by the start of the temporary
ceasefire in Gaza and for displacing nearly every resident of the Gaza Strip
multiple times. Additionally, the ongoing Israeli invasion of Syria and the
escalation in 2025 under the pretext of self-defense represent another case in a
long line of violations of international law and sovereignty, which Israel has
continually undermined with support from some Western countries.

The ceasefire did not prevent the Israeli government from maintaining and, more
concerning, expanding illegal settlements and displacing and killing Palestinian
people in the West Bank and Jerusalem, with increasing threats to a complete
annexation of the West Bank and Gaza from far-right politicians in Israel and
the USA alike, including Donald Trump. We strongly condemn that during the
ceasefire, Israel used hunger and halting humanitarian aid as leverage tools,
which is a war crime, as defined in the Geneva conventions.

The destruction caused by the Israeli military also includes deliberate
targeting of the environment, such as water systems, farmland, and sanitation
infrastructure, causing long-term ecological harm. This environmental
devastation, often overlooked, exacerbates the humanitarian crisis and
undermines future sustainability in the region.

On the 18th of March, Israel broke the ceasefire in Gaza. According to
Palestinian authorities, more than 1630 Palestinians have been killed since the
ceasefire was broken, with thousands of people wounded. Over 400,000 people have
been displaced since Israel broke the ceasefire in Gaza. We strongly condemn the
IDF’s murder of at least 408 aid workers, including one of the most recent
cases, where fifteen marked and recognizable rescue workers, including eight
paramedics, a UN worker, and six Gaza Civil Defence workers, were killed by the
IDF. The Israeli government initially denied the targeted killings of paramedics
and humanitarian workers, but was forced to admit responsibility after footage
surfaced, claiming it was a mistake. Further investigation reveals that those
victims were also buried in a mass grave, highlighting the lack of credibility
in the Israeli government's statements and the deliberate targeting of aid
workers and paramedics.

FYEG calls on the EU, its member states, the rest of the European states, and
the international community to take the following actions immediately to rebuild
and achieve a lasting and just peace, which is one of the first steps that need
to happen on the way to a well-being region.

Furthermore, FYEG calls for the United States of America and their fascist
president to fuck off from the Middle East. Gaza is not a free space that can be
turned into another playground for the ultra-wealthy.

FYEG calls for the international community to denounce any plans and schemes by
foreign states aimed at repurposing Gaza or other Palestinian territories for
their business ventures or other aims which are not primarily focused on
restoring stability and good living conditions for the population. For example,
the video from the official Donald Trump’s social media accounts that suggested
plans for building a resort and luxury residence buildings to benefit the
foreign ultra-wealthy class must be categorically denounced. Such an act would
amount, at the very least, to an ethnic cleansing of the Palestinian people, and
any suggestion that such an act would be “voluntary” is a lie.

Netanyahu and his government have used the breaking of the ceasefire as a way of
maintaining the far-right government and to regain support from the most radical
members of the Israeli parliament. The same government is strengthening its
relations with not only the USA's political leadership, but also the eurosceptic
and far-right parties in Europe. Particularly highlighting Prime Minister
Netanyahu's political party, Likud, has joined the far-right Patriots.eu party,
which contains far-right parties, including Rassemblement National, Fidesz,
Partij voor de Vrijheid, and many others. Many of these parties’ historical
roots are connected to antisemitism, which does not stop these forces from
collaborating.

During times when the United States of America is an increasingly unreliable
partner working to undermine the essential bases of international law, FYEG
calls for the European Union to develop an independent voice and approach with a
distinct voice, and take the leadership necessary to achieve a permanent and
just ceasefire in Gaza. The EU and its member states must recognize the
Palestinian state with its capital in Jerusalem. The EU must work to be one of
the actors to uphold democracy and human rights on a global scale and thus act
decisively by using all available leverage to ensure lasting peace in the region
and the freedom for self-determination for its peoples. The EU must show that
international agreements and laws must be respected and that there are no
exceptions. The EU and its member states must also hold themselves accountable
by ending arms trade, security cooperation, and economic agreements that support
systems of oppression in line with the EU Common Position on arms export
controls and in compliance with international humanitarian law. Continued
military collaboration, including joint research and security contracts, makes
European governments complicit in violations of international law.

As laid out in this and last year's resolution, Young Greens across Europe call
on our leaders to be on the right side of history and, however distant it may
seem, to work relentlessly towards a just and permanent ceasefire in Gaza and
lasting peace in the Middle East. Anything less will be complicity in one of the
greatest ongoing crimes of the early 21st century.