Board urges pressure on MEPs to vote against recognising Palestine

Thursday’s European Parliament vote to recognise ‘Palestine’ has seen hundreds of grassroots campaigners ask their MEPs to vote against it.

The “call to action,” involving the Board of Deputies, comes after European coalitions including the Socialists and Democrats Group (S&D) and the Unified European Left Party (GUE) instigated the vote.

“We urge you to email your local MEPs to urge them to vote against unilateral recognition of Palestinian statehood in the absence of a negotiated agreement between Israel and the Palestinians,” said a Board statement.

It follows similar measures in the parliaments of the UK, Ireland and Spain, and comes after Sweden’s new centre-left government said it would officially recognise Palestine. France is due to hold a vote on 2 December.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned that France would be making “a grave mistake” if it voted to recognise Palestinian statehood next week.

“Do they have nothing better to do at a time of beheadings across the Middle East, including that of a French citizen?” he asked.

The European vote, which is overwhelmingly likely to pass, is being seen in Israel as a sign of frustration at continuing settlement-building by Benjamin Netanyahu’s government, in the West Bank and East Jerusalem.

It may foreshadow an Adjournment Debate on 1 December in Westminster Hall on the “petition relating to ending the conflict in Palestine”. The discussion is sponsored by Grahame Morris MP, who also initiated the debate on Palestinian statehood.