Mediaboss Marketing

A European Union court Wednesday ordered the removal of Hamas from the European Union's list of terrorist organizations, based on a procedural technicality, a ruling that provoked anger from Israel as well as satisfaction from the militant Palestinian movement.

A statement from the General Court of the European Union said it annuls the measures maintaining Hamas on the European list of terrorist organizations. However, the court said assets seized from Hamas would continue to be frozen pending an appeal.

The court ruling coincided with another blow to Israeli policy. The Palestinian leadership submitted a draft resolution to the U.N. Security Council via allied Jordan that would call for a Palestinian state and force Israel to withdraw from the West Bank within two years.

Israeli officials have been pressuring the United States to wield its veto power at the Security Council should the draft be brought up for a vote. Palestinian leaders have vowed to proceed with the showdown, encouraged by recent votes in several European states in support of a deadline for Palestinian statehood unless idle peace talks come to fruition.

It was unclear when the draft might come up for a vote, but the United States was expected to use its veto power to block it.

U.S. Secretary of State John F. Kerry recently held separate discussions with Israeli and Palestinian officials in efforts to stave off a crisis over the resolution.

Palestinian Authority Foreign Minister Riad Malki told Palestinian radio Wednesday that no agreement was reached.

According to Malki, the draft is based on a French proposal and will address all the problems that existed over the past 20 years of negotiations.

Israel firmly rejects the move. After meeting with Kerry in Rome on Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Palestinian and European attempts to force conditions on Israel will only lead to a deterioration in the regional situation and will endanger Israel.

Also Wednesday, the European Parliament passed a resolution to support Palestinian statehood in principle. Reiterating its support for the two-state solution, the resolution called for the advance of peace talks.

Go here to read the rest:
Palestinians get backing from EU court ruling, proposed U.N. measure