Italian Member of the European Parliament Fulvio Martusciello said he will launch together with supporters from other EU political groupings, a new initiative to create a legal tool against boycotts, divestments and sanctions (BDS) movements.

‘’This initiative will take the form of a formal parliamentary resolution, based upon current French legislation that already outlaws many types of BDS,’’ he said in an op-ed published in the London’s Jewish News.

Martusciello, a member of the European People’s Party (EPP), the largest in the European Parliament, chairs the European Parliament’s delegation for relations with Israel.

He said the resolution ‘’will need to be widely supported by all of those committed to the EU-Israel relationship.’’

‘’I hope that all UK supporters of Israel will lobby their MEPs to support my counter-boycott initiative,’’ he said in his op-ed about the challenges faced by Israel in the EU, citing a constant call in Europe for economic, academic and other boycotts of Israel, threatening Israeli leaders with legal suits for “criminal acts” against the Palestinians and calls for labelling of products from the West Bank or the Golan Heights.

‘’My role as chairman of the European Parliament Delegation for relations with the state of Israel is important to promote those in Europe who have a positive say on the EU-Israel partnership along with the Israeli voices which can tell us about the democratic realities in the country,’’ Martusciello wrote.

‘’We can no longer accept some principles that are jeopardising EU-Israel relations, such as the principle of political compromise, always taking a unilateral critical voice against Israel and that is not shared by many politicians among the political scene in Europe,’’ he added.

He said many of his colleagues in the European Parliament share his idea but are blocked by the political group’s position.

‘’A European unilateral voice is important as long as it does not endanger relations of mutual interest, therefore we must able to divide our opinions if necessary,’’ he said.