36 MEPs want to deny Knesset member entry to European Parliament

Thirty-six members of the European Parliament have opposed hosting an Israeli colleague.

Amit Halevi from Likud, the same party as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was invited by Dutch MEP Bert-Jan Ruissen of the European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) group to participate in a conference on the Iranian regime.

The event, organised by the Israel Alliance Foundation in cooperation with the ECR group, is set to be held in the European Parliament in Brussels at 13.30 local time on Wednesday. 

However, a letter signed by 36 MEPs, obtained by Euronews, urges European Parliament President Roberta Metsola to bar Halevi from attending.

The letter was initiated by Dutch Greens/EFA MEP Tineke Strik, in collaboration with Slovenian Socialist MEP Matjaž Nemec and Irish Renew Europe MEP Barry Andrews. The signatories include members from the Socialists and Democrats, Greens/EFA, Renew Europe, and The Left groups.

Proponents argue that Amit Halevi’s participation in an event at the European Parliament would violate key principles, including disinterest, integrity, openness, diligence, honesty, accountability, and respect for the institution’s dignity and reputation.

The objection stems from “extremely concerning, dehumanizing, and even genocidal statements” that Halevi has made in recent months. The letter highlights several of his controversial remarks from the past year.

In an interview, Halevi claimed, “In the Al-Shifa Hospital, they caught 150 terrorists and killed them. At the same time, 300 terrorists were born in the maternity ward,” implying that children born in Al-Shifa would inevitably become terrorists.

In the same interview, he defended that “There is nothing called Palestinian people, never was, and will never be.” and that  “From the river to the sea, the national rights are only for one people, the nation of Israel”.

In a Facebook post, reported by local newspaper Arutz Sheva, he claimed that all the Palestinian people belong to two categories. “There are Palestinians who support Hamas’s Nazi education and Palestinians who serve as human shields for them. We can and must bomb both.” 

The letter also reminds that Halevi has introduced legislative proposals in the Israeli Knesset to annex and resettle Gaza, while expelling its civilian population. “If each country takes in 5,000-6,000 families, most of the problem is solved”, he said according to Israeli Radio103.

The signatories of the letter have urged President Metsola to “protect the dignity and reputation of this house” by preventing Halevi from joining the panel discussion.

“The president can always limit access to individuals from entering the Parliament by denying that person accreditation”, MEP Nemec told Euronews.

“We also reached out to the organiser but received no concrete reaction as to the possible change of the participants of the event”.

However, MEP Bert-Jan Ruissen, the conference organiser, defends Halevi’s participation and said he is “looking forward to meeting him in the conference tomorrow, with other guests”, in a written reply to Euronews.

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Ruissen’s office further claims that one of the quotes attributed to Halevi in the letter was misreported and that he has never endorsed killing children. 

EP President Roberta Metsola has not commented on the letter yet.