EU blacklists Hamas' political leader over Oct. 7 attack, posing threat to member states

Jan. 17 (UPI) -- European lawmakers have sanctioned Yahya Sinwar, the political leader of Hamas, over the threat his militant group poses to the union's member states and its October attack on Israel.

In a brief statement, the European Council, the union's body that decides its political direction, said it blacklisted Sinwar on Tuesday, freezing all of his funds and financial assets held in the union's 27-member states.

As the political leader of Hamas, Sinwar is believed to have been involved in the planning and execution of the Oct. 7 attack on Israel that resulted in the deaths of some 1,200 Israelis and sparked the ongoing war that has destabilized the region.

Israeli military officials have targeted Sinwar in its war, calling him a "dead man walking" and believe he and other Hamas leaders are hiding in tunnels under Gaza, which has been under Israeli siege for more than 100 days.

On Tuesday, Foreign Minister Israel Katz of Israel thanked the EU for sanctioning Sinwar, calling it "a just and moral decision."

"This decision is also a result of our diplomatic efforts to strangle the resources of the Hamas, to delegitimize them and prohibit all support to them," he said in a statement on X. "We will continue to eradicate the root of evil, in Gaza and wherever it raises its head."

The European Jewish Congress, an influential association that represents Europeans Jewish communities, similarly welcomed the move as "correct and logical," but called on the EU to extend its punitive measures to "all senior political and military leaders of Hamas, whether those directly involved in the terror campaign in Gaza or those nestled up in the hotels of Qatar and Turkey."

"Europe must show no tolerance to terrorism anywhere," EJC President Ariel Muzicant said in a statement.

Sinwar has been the subject of U.S. sanctions since 2015.

The announcement of sanctions against Sinwar comes after the EU blacklisted Mohammed Deif, commander general of Hamas military wing and Marwan Issa, his deputy commander, in December.