German parliament expected to pass motion urging Israel to end Gaza blockade

Thecross-party motion, an unusual demonstration of unity against Israelipolicy, follows calls in Germany to being Hamas into the politicalprocess.

The German parliament is due to back a rare cross-party motion later onThursday demanding that Israel lift its blockade of the Gaza Stripimmediately, in an unusual demonstration of unity against Israelipolicy.

The motion by lawmakers in Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservatives,her coalition partners the Free Democrats (FDP), and the maincenter-left opposition parties follows calls from Germany that Hamas,which controls Gaza, should be brought into the negotiating process.

Following the Nazi genocide of European Jews in World War II,Germany’s main political parties have staunchly supported Israel. Theyhave also strongly criticized Hamas, an Islamist group which refuses torecognize Israel.

However, the 2008 Israeli invasion and blockade of Gaza sparkedcriticism of Israel, which considers Hamas a terrorist organization andrefuses to negotiate with it.

« The living conditions of the civilian population of Gaza must beurgently improved, » said the German motion, adding that the blockade -which the government has already said should be ended - wascounterproductive and did not help to make Israel safer.

In response to Western criticism, Israel has eased the land blockadeof Gaza where 1.5 million Palestinians live, allowing most civiliangoods through, while continuing to enforce a naval embargo of thecoastal territory.

The German parliamentary initiative also urges Merkel’s government to press for a resumption of peace talks in the region.

« The motion will be adopted. There’s no doubt, » Rainer Stinner, foreign policy spokesman for the FDP, told Reuters.

In parliament, only the Left Party did not help to draft the motion,but the far-left grouping would also support it, said its foreignpolicy spokesman Wolfgang Gehrcke. « This marks a profound shift inpolicy towards Israel in Germany, in my view, » he said.

This week, the opposition center-left Social Democrats (SPD) saiddialogue with Hamas now looked inevitable due to support for them inGaza, and the FDP’s Stinner agreed.

« If you want to achieve anything in the Gaza Strip, you can’t get around making contact with Hamas, » he said.

Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) were more guarded about theprospect of dealing with Hamas, saying the organization had failed torenounce violence unequivocally or recognize Israel.

However, they did not rule out talks categorically.

Ruprecht Polenz, a senior CDU lawmaker and head of the Bundestag’sforeign policy committee, said Hamas hoped to exploit talks to obtaininternational recognition.

« It doesn’t necessarily follow from this that you shouldn’t speak toHamas at all, » he said. « But it follows you shouldn’t talk to them in away which raises their international standing - unless they show asubstantial change in their position. »