THE Scottish Greens have said they “condemn Hamas without hesitation” after one of their MSPs was embroiled in a row for suggesting the Palestinian militants had attacked Israel in response to “apartheid” and occupation.
The Scottish Tories have demanded the SNP tear up their deal with the Greens over a tweet by North East MSP Maggie Chapman in which she said the attacks on Israel were a “consequence of [apartheid], of illegal occupation [and] of imperial aggression by the Israel state”.
In response to those calls, Scottish Greens external affairs spokesperson Ross Greer said Hamas had committed “war crimes” in its attacks on civilians but said the “root cause” of violence in the region was the “illegal occupation” of Palestine by Israel.
Greer said: “Deliberately massacring innocent civilians is a war crime and an act of pure evil. We condemn Hamas without hesitation.
“Palestinians have the right under international law to resist the Israeli occupation by force, but Hamas fighters murdering young people at a music festival and kidnapping wheelchair-bound pensioners is no act of resistance.
“Israel’s illegal occupation of Palestine must be recognised as the root cause of these cycles of violence and both Hamas and the Israeli Government held to account for the war crimes they have committed.
"There is no military solution that does not consign thousands more innocent people, Palestinian and Israeli, to their deaths. The only path to peace starts with Israel ending its siege of Gaza and the occupation of all Palestinian territory.
“Half of the population of the Gaza Strip are children, so it is critical that a ceasefire is reached before Israel follows through on the threats issued by its military and political leaders.”
It follows a letter from Jackson Carlaw to Humza Yousaf calling for the SNP leader to tear up his party’s power-sharing agreement with the Greens.
Carlaw is the Tory MSP for Eastwood, in East Renfrewshire which is home to the largest Jewish communities in Scotland, mostly centred around Newton Mearns.
SNP External Affairs Secretary Angus Roberston said over the weekend there was “no justification” for the attacks.
A Kosher restaurant in a Jewish area of London was vandalised, in what is feared to be a retaliation to Hamas’s attacks on Israel, which were launched on Saturday on the Jewish holiday Simchat Torah.
Gaza is under a state of “complete siege” as of Monday and the Israeli military has branded Hamas “animals”. Israel has cut food, water, electricity and fuel supplies to the Palestinian territory.
A spokesperson for the First Minister said: "The First Minister will reply to Jackson Carlaw, but it's crass to reduce the horrendous situation unfolding in the Middle East to our domestic politics in Scotland.
"Maggie Chapman speaks only for herself. The First Minister speaks for the Scottish Government and we are clear the terrorist acts of Hamas are unjustifiable, inexcusable, and we condemn them."
The SNP declined to comment.
