Two Members of the European Parliament who visited Israel on Monday were denied entry into the country and sent back to Europe.
Irish MEP Lynn Boylan and French MEP Rima Hassan, both members of the Left Group and critics of Israeli policies, were expelled from Ben Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv shortly after their plane landed.
Boylan, who leads the European Parliament delegation on EU-Palestine relations, called the incident “shameful.”
“This total disregard by Israel is a result of the international community’s failure to hold them accountable,” she said.
The office of Israeli Minister of Internal Security Moshe Arbel issued a statement saying that Hassan would be blocked from entering Israel due to her support for the boycott of the country. The reasons for denying Boylan entry were not specified.
“Hassan, who is expected to arrive from Brussels in the next hour, has consistently worked to promote boycotts against Israel in addition to numerous public statements on social media and in media interviews,” said Arbel’s office.
Hassan and Boylan were traveling to Israel to meet with representatives of the Palestinian Authority and had called on the EU to suspend the EU-Israel Association Agreement due to the war in Gaza.
Both MEPs have been vocal in criticizing Israel’s actions in the besieged Gaza Strip. The brutal Israeli military assault on Gaza, following a deadly terrorist attack by the Hamas militant group on October 7, 2023, has resulted in at least 48,000 deaths, with many others missing and presumed dead.
Hassan sparked controversy in 2024 when she answered “yes” to the question of whether the October 7 Hamas attack was legal. In April of the previous year, she was summoned by police for “apologizing for a terrorist act.”
