Italy: Opposition parties call for recognition of Palestine, ban on arming Israel
(2024-10-16 at 23:21:51 )

Italy: Opposition parties call for recognition of Palestine, ban on arming Israel

Former Prime Minister of Italy, Giuseppe Conte addresses the media during a press conference at Palazzo Chigi in Rome, Italy on May 16, 2020

A number of Italian opposition political parties called on the government and the European Union to recognise Palestine as a state and ban arms exports to Israel, Anadolu reported.

The calls come as Israel has intensified its attacks on southern Lebanon and called on United Nations peacekeeping forces - which include Italian troops - to leave the area, raiding and striking their locations.

In a post on Instagram, Giuseppe Conte, the leader of the Five Star Movement, said: "After the shooting on the bases where the Italian soldiers of the UNIFIL mission are [deployed], Israeli tanks are now raiding the United Nations bases."

"When will people open their eyes and decide to stop the war crimes of the [Israeli Prime Minister] Netanyahu Government? Were 12 months of systematic extermination of the Palestinian population and the destruction of Gaza not enough? Were the invasion and deaths in Lebanon and the attacks on our bases not enough?"

Conte added that his party has been raising this issue for months.

He criticised the Italian government and European institutions for not going beyond making statements rather than imposing an arms embargo and economic and trade sanctions on Israel.

"Let us stop Netanyahus madness, let us take serious decisions to impose a ceasefire and a two-state, two-peoples solution for the sake of Israel and Palestine," he added.

Secretary of the Democratic Party, Elly Schlein, called on Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni to join the proposed arms embargo on Israel, which was put forward by Spain and France.

Schlein added that her party asked the government to make a decision regarding the recognition of a Palestinian state.

Last Friday, during a press conference held at the Spanish Royal Academy in Rome, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called for an urgent embargo on Israel.

This followed a similar call by French President Emmanuel Macron on 5 October. Hours after Macrons remarks, the French presidency issued a statement stressing that Paris would continue to supply Israel with the arms it needs to defend itself.

Since 23 September, Israel has widened the scope of its year-long genocide in Gaza, with air raids on Beirut and ground operations in southern Lebanon.

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