Europe warns Hamas “The violence ceases”

LUXEMBOURG – Hamas and other groups cease terrorist attacks against Israel. This is the pressing request, accompanied by the threat of sanctions, that the heads of European diplomacy address to those who organize the suicide bombings that make the Jewish state bleed. A warning that comes at a decisive stage in the Middle East peace process, which remains hanging by a thread. Next Thursday, in fact, the Israeli-Palestinian issue will be part of the agenda of the Thessaloniki EU summit. But already in these hours, in the Territories, it is laboriously working on that truce that could revive the dialogue between Sharon and Abu Mazen on the Road Map , the peace plan prepared by the US, EU, UN and Russia.

“The terrorist activities must immediately cease – reads the note of EU foreign ministers -, Hamas and the other groups must therefore accept the offer of the Palestinian authority, carried out by Egypt, and accept a total ceasefire with the objective of allowing the immediate and faithful application of the Quartet Road Map “. Then, the threat of concrete measures: the heads of European diplomacy warn the fundamentalist Palestinian movement that it risks being included in the “black list” of terrorist groups (where its “military wing” is already inserted) if it does not quickly renounce violence.

Yesterday it was the American president George Bush who launched a harsh offensive against Hamas, calling the “free world” to isolate it, to prevent it from breaking the fragile resumption of the negotiation process between Israelis and Palestinians.

Europeans for now take time on banning the entire movement. But, the Italian foreign minister Frattini pointed out, it can be a question of “hours” or “days”.

During the Luxembourg meeting there was also a question and answer today between the French minister Dominique de Villepin and the same Franco Frattini on Silvio Berlusconi’s visit to the Middle East. Reason for the dispute, the failure of the Italian premier to meet with Palestinian president Yasser Arafat. De Villepin criticized the Knight claiming that “he did not meet the European line”. And immediately Frattini’s reply arrived: “The behavior of the President of the Italian council is not outside any European line”.

Returning to the document signed today in Luxemburg, there is also one for Jerusalem, which is asked to take concrete initiatives to restore confidence “and to refrain from punitive measures, including extra-judicial killings”. The reference, in this case, is to the hunt unleashed against the terrorists or the suspects in the Territories.

June 16, 2003