A new Swiss law banning Hamas and groups linked to the Palestinian terrorist organization will come into force on May 15, the Swiss government announced on Wednesday.
The legislation, which was approved by parliament last December, gives Bern “the necessary tools to take action against Hamas activities or support for the organization in Switzerland,” the government said.
The law allows for preventive police measures such as entry bans or expulsions, and also makes it more difficult for the terrorist group to use Swiss banks as financial hubs for its activities, the statement noted.
In January, Ali Abunimah, co-founder and executive director of the anti-Israel Electronic Intifada website, was arrested by Swiss police ahead of a speaking engagement in Zurich.
Abunimah previously celebrated Hamas’s massacre in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, as an “anti-colonial operation.”
Zurich Canton Councilor Mario Fehr told the Neue Zürcher Zeitung, “We do not want an Islamist Jew-hater who calls for violence in Switzerland.”
The Swiss parliament on Dec. 11 approved a five-year ban on Hamas in response to the Oct. 7 invasion. The European country had previously only banned Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State, which are on the United Nations’ list of designated terror organizations.
The Swiss Parliament has also voted to outlaw Lebanon’s Hezbollah terror group. Opponents, including the Swiss government, argued that the ban would violate Switzerland’s commitment to neutrality.
“If Switzerland now moves to ban such organizations with special laws, we must ask ourselves where and how the boundaries are drawn,” said Swiss Justice Minister Beat Jans during the parliamentary debate.