French anti-Israel MEP Rima Hassan is facing possible disciplinary action after deliberately removing an Israeli flag from an exhibition inside the European Parliament commemorating victims of Hamas’s October 7 massacre. Hassan’s office has acknowledged that she removed the Israeli flag while disputing accusations that she trampled or damaged the flags, AFP reports.

The incident occurred Monday at the European Parliament in Strasbourg, where an exhibition had been set up ahead of the third anniversary of the October 7, 2023 massacre. Images circulated afterward showing both the Israeli and European Union flags lying on the floor beside the memorial display.

French MEP François-Xavier Bellamy accused Hassan of throwing the flags to the ground in front of photographs of victims of the massacre and demanded that she be sanctioned. Fellow French MEP Céline Imart said witnesses accused Hassan of trampling and vandalizing the flags, an allegation Hassan’s office strongly denies.

Hassan’s office confirmed that the far-left MEP intentionally removed the Israeli flag from its stand. It claimed, however, that the EU flag was connected to the same base and fell accidentally after the stand became unbalanced. Her office said neither flag was trampled or damaged and characterized Hassan’s removal of the Israeli flag as a protest against Israel.

European Parliament President Roberta Metsola addressed the incident Tuesday, saying a member of Parliament had been filmed “apparently” damaging the exhibition and that the matter was being treated “extremely seriously.” Parliament has launched disciplinary proceedings over the incident.

The controversy comes as Jewish communities in Israel and around the world mark three years since Hamas terrorists invaded southern Israel on October 7, 2023, murdering approximately 1,200 people and abducting 251 hostages into Gaza.

Hassan, a French-Palestinian member of the European Parliament representing the far-left La France Insoumise party, has repeatedly drawn controversy over her fierce opposition to Israel. The latest incident has prompted renewed condemnation from European lawmakers, with Bellamy demanding immediate consequences for her actions inside the Parliament building.

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