Aug 6, 2025
The immediate recognition of the Palestinian State, as unanimously decided by the Greek Parliament in 2015—a decision that has yet to be implemented—is demanded in exclusive statements to Dnews by SYRIZA President Socrates Famellos, General Secretary of the KKE Central Committee Dimitris Koutsoumpas, President of New Left Alexis Charitsis, and President of Course of Freedom Zoe Konstantopoulou.
The four political leaders strongly criticize the Greek government for its stance on the genocide being carried out by the Netanyahu government in Gaza, as well as the use of even the anti-racism law against fellow citizens mobilizing against Israel.
Four political leaders via Dnews: Greece must immediately recognize the State of Palestine
By Vassilis Skouris
Exclusive statements by Socrates Famellos, Dimitris Koutsoumpas, Alexis Charitsis, and Zoe Konstantopoulou on addressing the genocide in Gaza.
The immediate recognition of the Palestinian State, as unanimously decided by the Greek Parliament in 2015—a decision that has yet to be implemented—is demanded in exclusive statements to Dnews by SYRIZA President Socrates Famellos, General Secretary of the KKE Central Committee Dimitris Koutsoumpas, President of New Left Alexis Charitsis, and President of Course of Freedom Zoe Konstantopoulou.
The four political leaders strongly criticize the Greek government for its stance on the genocide being carried out by the Netanyahu government in Gaza, as well as the use of even the anti-racism law against fellow citizens mobilizing against Israel.
Socrates Famellos, President of SYRIZA-PS
At a time when the humanitarian crisis in Gaza has reached nightmarish proportions, it is a time for responsibility and action.
According to the UN and the IPC, 93% of Gaza’s population faces a food crisis, while hundreds of thousands are starving. Dozens of civilians, including children, lose their lives every day. Civilians, families, and small children are experiencing one of the worst humanitarian crises of recent decades—a crisis deliberately intensified by the criminal stance of Israel’s leadership.
Immediate and unimpeded humanitarian aid, a ceasefire, an end to the genocide, the return of all hostages, and the resumption of negotiations under UN resolutions for a two-state solution with East Jerusalem as the capital of Palestine are all necessary.
Greece has an obligation to take international initiatives in this direction and for Prime Minister Mitsotakis to stop acting as a follower of the criminal choices of Trump and Netanyahu.
Now is the time for Greece to officially recognize the State of Palestine—exactly as the Parliament unanimously decided in 2015, at the initiative of the SYRIZA government.
I raised this issue and submitted it as a SYRIZA-PS proposal on May 27, two and a half months ago, to the President of the Republic and then to the Foreign Minister. I personally conveyed the same position in Palestine and at the European Parliament in early June.
I call on Mr. Mitsotakis, even with tragic delay, to follow the example of other European countries and proceed with the recognition of the Palestinian State. This choice aligns with the sentiment of Greek citizens and the national line of our foreign policy. At the same time, it is a choice that respects International Law and Peace.
It is time for Greece to implement its historic decision and stand by the Palestinian people. We cannot close our eyes to the daily crime in Gaza. This is a historic and moral obligation for all of us.
Dimitris Koutsoumpas, General Secretary of the KKE Central Committee
Soon, it will be two years since the beginning of the greatest crime of the 21st century: the genocide of the Palestinian people by the murderous state of Israel, which plans to complete the crime with the full military occupation of the Gaza Strip, with the full support of its imperialist allies—the US, NATO, and the EU. In these two years, Palestinian deaths, mostly civilians, women, and children, exceed 60,000, while in just two months, over 1,000 have been cold-bloodedly murdered trying to receive a plate of food from the meager “humanitarian” aid that has become a death trap. Only horror and rage remain…
Today, it is abundantly clear what lay behind the infamous “Israel’s right to self-defense,” which the ND government and other Euro-Atlantic parties rushed to defend, while the KKE emphasized that the Palestinian people, like any people under occupation and oppression, have the right to resist in the forms of struggle they choose.
The ND government bears criminal, historic responsibilities—not only for stubbornly refusing to condemn the brutality but also for becoming a chief advocate of the murderous Israeli state, defending the “strategic alliance” with it. It goes so far as to smear solidarity demonstrations for Palestine with the label of “anti-Semitism” and to activate the so-called “anti-racist” law to suppress them—while knowing that within Israel itself, parties like the Communist Party of Israel and movements condemn the genocide and face persecution.
Against the governments allied with Netanyahu, against the complicity and hypocrisy of “international organizations,” the solidarity sentiments of the Greek people and other peoples in Europe and the world stand firm, demanding an end to the crime and, finally, a homeland for the Palestinian people.
Nothing less than the immediate implementation of the Greek Parliament’s unanimous 2015 decision to recognize an independent Palestinian State within the 1967 borders, with East Jerusalem as its capital, and the cessation of all cooperation with the Israeli state—which constitutes complicity in the crime—is acceptable. We recall that on these issues, we submitted a Timely Question to the Prime Minister in May and a request for an urgent parliamentary debate, so far in vain.
Against the horror of war and the real culprits, against those who defend the modern crimes of imperialism as “normalcy,” no one can remain indifferent, silent, or look away. Rage against the murderous state and anger at the Greek government supporting the crime must now be expressed even more massively and decisively.
The only compass that should guide those who want to be on the right side of History is captured in the words: “Defend the child, because if the child survives, there is hope.”
Alexis Charitsis, President of New Left
In the nearly two years since the massacre in Gaza began, Israel has steadily lost allies and faced a wave of unprecedented global outrage over its murderous policies. The reason is simple: the choices of Netanyahu’s far-right government are terrifying. The genocide in Gaza is now linked to a declared strategic goal: its liquidation and annexation by the Israeli state. This is the definition of total war.
Global outcry and popular mobilization have led governments of different origins to converge on the decision to recognize the State of Palestine. This is not a symbolic move. It is a transformative decision, turning Israel’s war into a war against a state recognized by powerful countries that for decades maintained a cautious stance—ultimately encouraging Israeli aggression.
In this light, the Greek government’s stance reflects deep subservience to a cause that has lost all moral grounding. While the world discusses how to stop Netanyahu’s inhuman and illegal plan, the Mitsotakis government brands every voice supporting Palestine’s rights as an enemy. Instead of utilizing the Parliament’s unanimous December 2015 decision and finally recognizing a Palestinian state, it moves in the exact opposite direction—even mobilizing the anti-racism law to suppress justified outrage at the horrific images from Gaza.
Now, however, the tide has turned in Greek society. A radical shift in public discourse is evident: the word “genocide” is now heard even from those who until recently viewed it with suspicion and hostility.
And I am proud that New Left has been at the forefront of this effort from the very beginning.
Zoe Konstantopoulou, President of Course of Freedom
Solidarity with the Palestinian people is both an international and national duty.
In Palestine, a genocide is being committed before the eyes of Humanity. In the most brutal and cynical way, “Never Again”—the vow Humanity made after WWII and the Holocaust—is being trampled. Against this ongoing brutality, which has claimed over 60,000 lives, nearly 20,000 of them children, and threatens more innocent civilians daily, we have a duty as a people to stand tall, to become the voice of the skeletal children and desperate parents in Palestine, who wait, at last, for Humanity to act.
The Greek people have always stood in solidarity with the Palestinian people. We, too, are a people who, when tested, relied on international solidarity. We are a people who stood tall against Hitler and the Occupation forces. Today, our citizens stand with Palestine in every way they can: through movements, international initiatives (March to Gaza, Freedom Flotilla), events, activism, and, of course, supporting the BDS movement—boycott, divestment, sanctions against the State and Government of Israel, culpable for international crimes.
The Greek government’s silence is utterly at odds with the will, desire, tradition, and way of life of our people. It also violates international law, international criminal law, and our country’s international obligations.
The Greek government must immediately take initiatives to defend the innocent victims of genocide:
- Immediate Recognition of the Palestinian State, an action already taken by one Western country after another. The Greek Parliament adopted a relevant decision in 2015.
- Immediate cessation of military, trade, and diplomatic relations with the State of Israel, which is committing international crimes.
- Immediate activation of initiatives under Chapter 7 and the UN Security Council’s mandate (where Greece is currently a member) to safeguard international peace and security and protect civilians.
- Substantive cooperation with the International Criminal Court for the arrest of wanted B. Netanyahu and all other accountable individuals.
- Substantive cooperation with the International Court of Justice to enforce the decision to end the Occupation of Gaza.
These are minimal, obligatory, and imperative actions that constitute both an international obligation and a national duty. International solidarity and the defense of victims, civilians, and justice have always been identified with Greece and the Greek people.
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