Switzerland set to formally ban Hamas

The Swiss government announced Wednesday it would bring forward a draft law by the end of February explicitly banning Hamas activities or support for the Palestinian militant group within Switzerland.

Published: 22 November 2023 15:27 CET

Switzerland looks et to ban Hamas. A picture taken on September 29, 2023 at the House of Parliament in Bern shows the entrance of the room of the Swiss Federal Council. (Photo by Fabrice COFFRINI / AFP)

“The Federal Council decided to draft a federal act banning Hamas, considering this to be the most appropriate response to the situation that has prevailed in the Middle East since October 7th,” the government said in a statement.

“The act will provide the federal authorities with the necessary tools to counter any Hamas activities or support for the organisation in Switzerland.”

On October 7th, Hamas gunmen launched the worst attack in Israel’s history that left around 1,200 people dead, most of them civilians, according to the Israeli government.

Hamas and other Palestinian militant groups also took an estimated 240 Israelis and foreigners hostage.

Israel declared war on Hamas, vowing to bring the hostages home and to destroy the militant group.

It launched a major bombing campaign and ground offensive in Gaza, which, according to the Hamas government, has killed 14,100 people, thousands of them children.

The seven-member Swiss government is formed by ministers from the four biggest parties, and lawmakers in parliament are likely to swing strongly behind the draft law, given the positions of the major parties.

The hard-right Swiss People’s Party, the biggest in the country, has been strongly pushing for a ban.

The Swiss government called Wednesday for respect for international humanitarian law and particularly the protection of civilians.

It “reiterated its condemnation of the Hamas terrorist attacks in the strongest possible terms” and voiced “deep sorrow” for the thousands of civilians who have lost their lives since.

Switzerland “recognises Israel’s right to ensure its own defence and security”, it added.

“In view of the dramatic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, the Federal Council stresses the need to ensure unimpeded humanitarian access. Humanitarian pauses are necessary for this purpose.”

Bern reiterated the need to restore the prospect of a political framework in the region, based on a two-state solution.

“This approach is the only viable path towards ensuring that both the Palestinian and Israeli populations can coexist peacefully, securely and with dignity,” it said.

Member comments

Become a Member to leave a comment.

For weeks, students around the world have been calling for their universities to cut ties with Israeli institutions over the war in Gaza.

Students at the University of Lausanne (UNIL) were the first to mobilise in Switzerland, with several hundred occupying a hall Thursday evening to demand an end to partnerships with Israeli universities.

UNIL responded in a statement that it “considers that there is no reason to cease these relations”. Protesters and the rector will meet later Tuesday.

On Tuesday, the movement spread to the prestigious EPFL university in Lausanne, where a group of students occupied the university’s hall, an AFP photographer observed.

A picture taken on May 7, 2024 in Geneva shows Pro-Palestinian students protestors and activists holding a meeting in the hall they occupied at the University of Geneva (UNIGE). – Pro-Palestinian protests on May 7, 2024 spread to three universities in Switzerland, inspired by similar demonstrations on campuses that began in the United States. (Photo by Elodie LE MAOU / AFP)

The students are demanding “an academic boycott” of Israeli institutions and “an end to censorship at EPFL”, and called on other universities to join in.

Tens of students protested in the entrance hall of the ETH Zurich shortly before midday on Tuesday, shouting “Free Palestine” and rolling a poster onto the floor that said “no Tech for Genocide” before being removed by police, according to news agency Keystone-ATS.

In Geneva, the Palestine Student Coordination – University of Geneva (CEP-UnigGe) took over a hall at the university with sofas, chairs and tables around midday, the Swiss agency reported.

Numerous Palestinian flags and banners were hung on all floors of the building. An assembly is scheduled for Tuesday.

In a letter to the university’s rector, the group called for “an immediate end to links between the University of Geneva and Israeli universities” and called on the rectorate to encourage the admission of Palestinian students.

Students across Europe have launched pro-Palestinian protests on campuses in Ireland, France, The Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.