R11: A De-colonial Approach to Palestine and Israel

The Federation of Young European Greens (FYEG) expresses its deepest concern and
condemnation of the ongoing genocide in Palestine, especially in the Gaza Strip,
and the broader humanitarian and political catastrophe. As the youth wing of the
European Green Party and an organisation committed to climate justice,
decoloniality, feminism, non-violence, anti-racism and -fascism, we cannot
remain silent in the face of such clear and devastating injustice.

We denounce the international community's failure to intervene effectively to
stop Israel's assault on Gaza, the West-Bank, and neighbouring countries, and we
oppose the continued support that Israel receives from the European Union, the
United States, and other states through arms deals, diplomatic cover, and
financial assistance. This resolution articulates FYEG’s firm anti-imperialist,
decolonial position on this situation in the Middle-East.

The Occupation and Humanitarian Crisis

Since October 2023, Israel has dramatically escalated its military operations in
Gaza. As of May 2025, over 50,000 Palestinians have been killed, and tens of
thousands more injured or unaccounted for, many buried under rubble. Most of
Gaza’s population has been forcibly displaced multiple times. Hospitals,
schools, refugee camps, and UN-run facilities have been deliberately bombed.
Israel's restriction on aid access has created famine conditions in northern
Gaza and critical shortages elsewhere. Water is undrinkable. Electricity is cut.
Fuel for hospitals is blocked. In addition at least 408 aid workers have been
killed — often in clearly marked convoys. The siege is total.

In July 2024, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ruled in its advisory
opinion that Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territory is illegal under
international law. The ICJ emphasised Israel’s responsibility as an occupying
power to ensure the welfare of the occupied population, which Israel is failing
to uphold. Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have documented
indiscriminate bombing, enforced displacement, and intentional destruction of
civilian infrastructure and the environment.

The systematic denial of food, water, and medical care — combined with
incitement to violence by Israeli officials and the continued bombardment of
areas even after civilians were ordered to evacuate there — demonstrates
genocidal intent. Under Article II of the 1948 Genocide Convention, creating
conditions calculated to destroy a national, ethnical, racial, or religious
group constitutes genocide.

Amnesty International’s 2024 report confirms deliberate attacks on civilian
areas. The destruction of entire neighbourhoods, use of white phosphorus,
targeted killings of journalists, and the systematic dismantling of Gaza’s
infrastructure all contribute to the destruction of Palestinian life and future.
Pink-washing to justify oppression by Israel must also be denounced, as it
attempts to frame colonial violence as “progressive.”

We recognise the legitimate right of oppressed people to resist. At the same
time, we reaffirm our non-violent principles and condemn all violations of
international humanitarian law — including the targeting of civilians, taking of
hostages, and acts of gender-based violence committed by any party.

A Framework for Just Peace

As young greens and anti-colonial activists, we reject any narrative that frames
this genocide as a symmetrical conflict. It is not. It is the brutal oppression
of a colonized people by a militarized and internationally backed occupying
power. The ongoing genocide and occupation cannot be resolved by merely ending
overt acts of violence—whether bombings, starvation, or obstruction of aid. A
meaningful resolution must address the structural imbalance between Israel as
the colonizing power and Palestine as the colonized population.

The path forward requires acknowledging the power asymmetry between the
coloniser and the colonised. Palestinians do not have a standing army, state
infrastructure, or freedom of movement. In contrast, Israel possesses
overwhelming military force, nuclear weapons, and enjoys full diplomatic and
economic support from major Western powers. Any peace process that ignores this
imbalance will only reproduce violence.

Therefore, a truly just and sustainable peace cannot be built on colonial
foundations. The so-called “two-state solution” has been used as a rhetorical
shield by the international community while Israel entrenches control through
settlements, apartheid, and military occupation. It is no longer viable — if it
ever was — and simply reinforces colonial logic that privileges state
sovereignty over people’s lived realities.

The current de facto reality is an apartheid regime under Israel’s control,
where Palestinians are denied equal rights, freedom of movement, and access to
resources. Palestinians in Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, and within
Israel itself live under various forms of control, dispossession, and structural
violence. The Israeli government has enshrined Jewish supremacy in its legal
frameworks, consolidating an apartheid system as documented by B’Tselem,
Amnesty, and Human Rights Watch.

We therefore call for a single, democratic, secular state in historic Palestine
— from the Jordan River to the Mediterranean Sea — where eventually all people,
regardless of ethnicity, religion, gender, or sexual orientation, enjoy equal
rights. A unified state must guarantee the right of return for Palestinian
refugees as enshrined in UN Resolution 194, dismantle all forms of apartheid,
and institute full legal and political equality.

This vision demands demilitarisation, restorative justice, and reparations. We
reject attempts to “normalise” the occupation through economic integration,
humanitarian band-aids, or security guarantees for the occupier while the
occupied are caged. Peace cannot mean the silencing of the oppressed. It must
mean liberation.

Final Remarks

FYEG reaffirms its commitment to a decolonial, anti-racist, anti-capitalist, and
feminist approach to international justice. Our values compel us to speak out
against genocide, apartheid, and settler colonialism wherever they occur.

We reject narratives of “both sides” that obscure the reality of occupation and
genocide. There is no symmetry between an occupying military power and a
stateless, colonised people. Legality, especially when shaped by colonial
powers, cannot replace morality. Throughout history, laws have upheld slavery,
apartheid, and occupation. Justice must come from the people.

Ending Israel’s assault on Gaza is only the first step. We must address the root
causes of the conflict: settler colonialism, ethnic cleansing, and global
complicity. Palestinians are not victims of a natural disaster. They are being
deliberately targeted by a state that enjoys international impunity.

We stand with Palestinian, Jewish, and international voices of conscience who
demand liberation, safety, and dignity for all.

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free. From the sea to the river,
Palestine will live forever.

FYEG Calls Upon:

The International Community to:

The European Green Party and Other Political Parties to:

The European Union and Member States to:

The State of Israel to:

Palestinian Leadership and Resistance Movements to: