Removal of Hamas from the EU Terrorist List by the Human Rights Court

On Wednesday, December 26, the European Court of Human Rights removed Hamas from the list of terrorist organizations of the European Union. The court stated that the inclusion of Hamas on this list did not comply with European 'criteria.' According to Reuters, the court argued that Hamas's listing as a terrorist organization was not based on reliable information but rather on data including that found on the internet. The European court also declared that no solid and admissible evidence was presented in the previous decision. Ms. Lilian Gluck, a European lawyer who represented Hamas in the European Court of Human Rights, expressed her 'satisfaction' with this decision to AFP. However, the ruling of the European Court of Human Rights to remove Hamas from the terrorist list is not binding for EU member states. Many major European governments, including the UK and Germany, have classified Hamas as a terrorist organization. According to Reuters, the European Court of Human Rights did not lift the sanctions imposed against Hamas. The court also left the door open for the EU to present a new case against the nature of Hamas, stating that if the EU wishes to appeal today's ruling, it has the opportunity to do so within the next three months. According to the Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper website, the EU placed Hamas on its terrorist list in 2003 following a series of intensive joint efforts by Israel and the United States. The removal of Hamas from the EU's terrorist list allows this Palestinian movement to expand its contacts with officials of European countries and parliaments. Some European countries, including Scandinavian governments, had maintained limited contact with Hamas officials despite the EU labeling Hamas as a terrorist organization for the past eleven years. Reactions to the European Court of Human Rights' decision regarding Hamas: According to Reuters, Sami Abu Zuhri, a spokesman for Hamas in the Gaza Strip, welcomed the announcement of the European Court of Human Rights' decision. Abu Zuhri described this ruling as 'a significant achievement for the Palestinian people,' stating that 'injustice and oppression' against the nature of Hamas has been somewhat compensated. However, the Israeli government immediately criticized the European court's decision. According to Israel Radio, the country's Prime Minister said shortly after the ruling was published that they ask the EU to re-list Hamas as it is a 'full-fledged terrorist group.' Hamas was involved in a devastating and costly war in Gaza with the Israeli army three months ago. Recently, Hamas celebrated its 27th anniversary with a series of ceremonies and military parades in Gaza, praising Iran's continued financial and military assistance to the organization.