(JTA) — The European Parliament passed a resolution on Israel and the Palestinians that omits any reference to Hamas, but which advocates of the Jewish state said was more balanced than previous documents endorsed by that institution.

The resolution, titled “Situation in the West Bank, including settlements,” that the parliament passed Thursday in Strasbourg “condemns all acts of violence, acts of terrorism against Israelis, and incitement to violence which are fundamentally incompatible with advancing a peaceful two-state solution.”

Past resolutions generally avoided identifying culprits and victims, a style that critics complained suggested that both parties might be guilty of such acts rather than just the Palestinians.

Forwarding the News

Thoughtful, balanced reporting from the Forward and around the web, bringing you updated news and analysis of the crisis each day.

Terms(Required)

I agree to the Forward's Terms of Service and Privacy Policy

Email(Required)

“While we would have wished for even clearer language, we appreciate the important step Parliament has taken to end the counterproductive habit of sheltering the Palestinians from legitimate criticism,” said Daniel Schwammenthal, the director of the American Jewish Committee‘s Transatlantic Institute in Brussels, in a  statement.

The resolution features numerous allegations against Israel and a statement that Jerusalem should be “the capital of both states” – an Israeli and a Palestinian one. While condemning terrorism in general and against Israelis particularly, the resolution does not mention Hamas, the militant group which is blacklisted as a terrorist group by the European Union and which controls Gaza.

A message from our CEO & publisher Rachel Fishman Feddersen

I hope you appreciated this article. Before you move on, I wanted to ask you to support the Forward’s award-winning journalism during our High Holiday Monthly Donor Drive.

This year, we have stood together in strength and sorrow. Our Forward team has worked around the clock to help you find clarity amid the chaos.

If you’ve turned to the Forward in the past 12 months to better understand the world around you, we hope you will support us with a gift now. Your support has a direct impact, giving us the resources we need to report from Israel and around the U.S., across college campuses, and wherever there is news of importance to American Jews.

Make a monthly or one-time gift and support Jewish journalism throughout 5785. The first six months of your monthly gift will be matched for twice the investment in independent Jewish journalism. 

—  Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO

Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.

$36 $500

$120 $180 Other amount