Lynn Boylan: EU Must Suspend Cooperation with Israel
Lynn Boylan challenges the EU over its failure to act on Israel's breaches of international law, urging suspension of cooperation programs and a ban on goods from settlements. She cites a 2017 legal opinion and the ICJ to demand immediate action from the Commission and Trade Commissioner.
Lynn Boylan accuses Member States of blocking decisive measures in the Foreign Affairs Council and says EU institutions have refused to act for almost a decade despite clear legal advice. She highlights Horizon Europe and Erasmus as examples of cooperation that could be suspended.
Boylan references a 2017 legal opinion indicating the EU was legally entitled to suspend cooperation with Israel due to violations of international law, and points to the International Court of Justice confirmation that trade with settlements is illegal. She asks why the Commission, and specifically the Trade Commissioner, has not presented a proposal under Article 207 of the Treaties.
She lists the humanitarian impact she sees as a result of inaction: genocide in Gaza, annexation of the West Bank, entrenched apartheid policies, racialised capital punishment, and recent attacks on Christian holy sites. Boylan also notes the displacement of civilians in Lebanon and the continuing killing since the ceasefire.
Boylan directly challenges Member States that she says obstructed action, calling out sensitivities invoked by the German government. Her central demand is a ban on settlement goods and services and an end to EU complicity through continued cooperation while alleged violations continue.
What Lynn Boylan said
Lynn Boylan accuses Member States of blocking decisive measures in the Foreign Affairs Council and says EU institutions have refused to act for almost a decade despite clear legal advice. She highlights Horizon Europe and Erasmus as examples of cooperation that could be suspended.
Legal basis for action
Boylan references a 2017 legal opinion indicating the EU was legally entitled to suspend cooperation with Israel due to violations of international law, and points to the International Court of Justice confirmation that trade with settlements is illegal. She asks why the Commission, and specifically the Trade Commissioner, has not presented a proposal under Article 207 of the Treaties.
Humanitarian and regional consequences
She lists the humanitarian impact she sees as a result of inaction: genocide in Gaza, annexation of the West Bank, entrenched apartheid policies, racialised capital punishment, and recent attacks on Christian holy sites. Boylan also notes the displacement of civilians in Lebanon and the continuing killing since the ceasefire.
Political consequences and demands
Boylan directly challenges Member States that she says obstructed action, calling out sensitivities invoked by the German government. Her central demand is a ban on settlement goods and services and an end to EU complicity through continued cooperation while alleged violations continue.
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Transcript
Yesterday, the EU Observer reported that as far back as 2017, the then-commissioned top lawyer was very clear. EU was legally entitled to suspend cooperation with Israel, such as Horizon Europe and Erasmus Exchange, due to Israel's violations of international law. Almost ten years and the EU has refused to act. We have witnessed a genocide in Gaza, the annexation of the West Bank, entrenchment of apartheid policies, racialised capital punishment, 1,000 Palestinians killed since the ceasefire, and in the first half of 2026, 88 attacks against Christians in Christian holy sites, and not to mention the 1 million displaced civilians in Lebanon. Yesterday, again, the Foreign Affairs Council took no action because of some Member States. So with all due respect to the German government, we are tired of hearing about your sensitivities. A heinous genocide against Jewish people, perpetrated by an earlier generation, cannot be used to justify an Israeli genocide against Palestinians. Your obstruction is making us all complicit. And finally, I want to raise the issue of a ban on settlement goods and services. Because where is Maros Sefcovic? Where is the proposal from the Commission based on Article 207 of the Treaties? This is the bare minimum that we should be doing. The ICJ confirmed trade with the settlements is illegal. Now we need the Trade Commissioner to turn up, do his job, and ban this illegal trade.