Post by Bystanders No More

🕊️ 𝗔𝗱𝘃𝗼𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸: Justice for Palestine EU/ European Left Alliance 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗘𝗨 The 'Justice for Palestine' petition calling for the suspension of the EU-Israel Association Agreement surpassed one million signatures earlier this week. Under the rules of the European Commission, a European Citizens’ Initiative must gather at least 1 million valid signatures and meet minimum thresholds in at least seven EU member states to be considered by the Commission. That it crossed this threshold in just three months – setting a record for the fastest initiative to do so since the mechanism was introduced in 2007 – underscores how strongly many Europeans feel that it is well past time Europe stopped supporting and enabling Israel's continued violations of human rights across the Middle East. It has also exceeded the required national signature thresholds in 10 EU member states surpassing the minimum of seven countries needed for validation. The EU-Israel trade agreement is of vital importance: it gives Israel preferential trade treatment including lower tariffs, and the EU is Israel's largest trading partner. Total trade in goods was worth around €42.6bn in 2024, with the EU accounting for just under a third of Israel's exports. The agreement, which dates back to 2000, includes a human rights clause stating that it is based on respect for human rights and democratic principles. The European Commission's own review found Israel in breach of that clause in June 2025. Ten months later, no operative action has followed. The institutional significance of this petition is specific: the Commission is now required to formally respond regardless of what the Council decides this week — a procedural shift that changes the risk environment for any institution treating EU-level action as a distant contingency. ‼️ The success of this petition is not guaranteed. The EU is not legally obliged to act. But at minimum, the European Commission will have to examine the proposal and decide whether to take action. The support this petition has garnered is testament to what one voice, one idea – amplified over a million times, one voice at a time, can do. 👉 The organisers are mobilising supporters towards a new target of 1.5 million to build a wide margin for any votes that might be deemed invalid. EU citizens can continue to sign the petition here: https://lnkd.in/eVTqbm6T #HumanRights #EU #BystandersNoMore