Human rights groups and civil society bodies call on government to act on Gaza
Dozens of organisations have called on coalition parties Vooruit, CD&V and Les Engagés to take “immediate” action over the humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip.
“Empty words are worse than complicit silence: take action today!” they write in a joint statement, which was also signed by prominent figures from Belgium's cultural, scientific, social, sporting and religious worlds, as well as hundreds of citizens.
The organisations condemn the “televised genocide”. They say that official reports, figures and the positions of international courts underscore the scale of the crimes being committed by the Israeli army in Palestine.
Among those demanding action are socialist and Christian trade unions and mutual societies, the Palestinian collective Beitna, the Union of Progressive Jews of Belgium, the Anti-Zionist Jewish Alliance Belgium, Oxfam, Greenpeace, the League for Human Rights, CNCD-11.11.11, Beweging.net and BelRefugees.
They want the government to take concrete measures, following the example of other EU countries such as Spain, Ireland and the Netherlands.
Among other things, they propose immediate recognition of Palestine, an embargo on the production and transit of weapons, the expulsion of the Israeli ambassador and the exclusion of Israel from the Swift payment platform.
"Empty words are worse than complicit silence: take action today"
While they are satisfied with the evolution of the parties’ positions, they criticise the lack of concrete action.
“Three of the five governing parties, that is the majority of the government,” they say. They call on the government to take “courageous and immediate action”, even if it leads to a government crisis in Belgium.
Lack of sanctions
“The fact that there are two parties in their government that deny the genocide is not our choice but theirs,” they say.
CD&V leader Sammy Mahdi has recently expressed his frustration at the lack of sanctions imposed on Israel. He believes a “small country” like Belgium cannot solve the situation, but it can be a “catalyst to get others moving”.
Francophone liberals MR and, to a lesser extent, Flemish nationalists N-VA – both members of the government coalition – are opposed to both recognising Palestine and imposing sanctions on Israel.
Nearly 1,400 Palestinians have been killed since the end of May in the Gaza Strip, most of them by the Israeli army while they were waiting for humanitarian aid, the UN said on Friday.
“In total, since May 27, at least 1,373 Palestinians have been killed while seeking food,” said a statement from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights in the Palestinian Territories, reported by AFP. “Most of these killings were committed by the Israeli army.”
Many individuals have also signed the letter, including writers Dalila Hermans and Tom Lanoye, director of the Hannah Arendt Institute Christophe Busch, Groen politicians Nadia Naji and Celia Groothedde, former Children’s Rights Commissioner Ankie Vandekerkhove, human rights activist Samira Atillah and ULB professor Dirk Jacobs.
Pro-Palestinian protesters take part in a demonstration in Brussels, organised by civil society groups, trade unions and human rights organisations calling for a ceasefire in Gaza and sanctions against Israel, 15 June 2025 © PHOTO ROMANE ISKARIA / MIDDLE EAST / ABACAPRESS.COM
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