The Swiss federal government has decided to ban the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas with a law submitted to parliament, it said in a statement on Wednesday.
The Federal Council (government) “decided to draft its own law aimed at banning Hamas. He believes that this option is the best solution to respond to the situation that has prevailed in the Middle East since October 7 and the unprecedented attacks on Israeli territory by the Islamist movement.
Four days after this attack, in which 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed on the Israeli side and around 240 were taken hostage, the Federal Council estimated that Hamas “should be classified as a terrorist organization.”
“This law will provide federal authorities with the appropriate tools to combat possible Hamas activities or support for the organization in Switzerland,” the government said in the press release.
The positions of the country’s main parties leave little doubt about the outcome of the vote.
The UDC (Radical Right), the country’s leading party, which further consolidated its position in the October 22 parliamentary elections, had called for this measure as vigorously as the country’s Jewish organizations.
The European Union and the United States, among others, have already described Hamas as a “terrorist organization”.
The departments of the various Swiss ministries affected must submit a draft federal law by the end of February 2024.
After the October 7 attack, Israel responded with a relentless bombardment of the Gaza Strip, which was also under a near-total blockade, and then sent infantry there.
The Hamas government announced Tuesday that 14,128 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli bombings since October 7.
According to the Palestinian Hamas government, 5,840 children and 3,920 women were among the deaths registered so far. In addition, 33,000 people were injured.