London Palestine Embassy condemns UK blacklisting of Hamas

The Palestinian Mission in the UK on Friday condemned the designating of Hamas as a “terrorist organisation”, stressing that this step “will make peace-making harder” than ever.

“With this move, the British government has complicated Palestinian unity efforts and undermined Palestinian democracy,” the mission announced in a statement.

“It is a retrograde and one-sided step that will do nothing for efforts to secure a peaceful two-state solution, an outcome that is being undermined every day by Israeli war crimes, including its illegal colonial settlement project in occupied territory,” the statement added.

The mission also stressed: “The Palestinian side has been asking the world to implement international law equally on all sides and to provide international protection for the Palestinian people suffering under a belligerent and violent Israeli military occupation. Israel’s transgressions of international law, international legitimacy and international human rights law are well known, including to the British government.”

Head of the Palestinian Mission in the UK, Dr Husam Zomlot, urged the UK Government to reconsider its decision and to adopt a more even-handed approach if it is to play a positive role in peace-making efforts.

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