Hamas document obtained by IDF casts shadow on EU envoy's relations to group

The EU’s former envoy to the Palestinian territories has come under scrutiny following accusations that he promoted positions at odds with official EU policy and was viewed favourably by Hamas leaders in Gaza.

An internal Hamas document obtained by journalists indicates that Sven Kühn von Burgsdorff adopted a personal approach toward Gaza that went beyond Brussels’ established red lines, according to a report by Euractiv.

The German diplomat served as the EU’s ambassador to the Palestinian territories and the Gaza Strip from January 2020 until July 2023.

During his tenure, the article notes, Kühn von Burgsdorff repeatedly faced criticism from Israeli officials and within EU circles for stances considered inconsistent with EU guidelines. These included assurances given to Palestinian NGOs found to have employed terrorists that they would not risk losing EU funding, despite tighter EU rules on countering terror financing.

The internal Hamas document, seized by the Israeli military during its later campaign in Gaza, suggests that Islamist leaders in the enclave held the EU envoy in high regard. The Jerusalem-based NGO Monitor reviewed the document and shared its analysis with Euractiv.

Dated 28 September 2021, the document quotes officials from Gaza’s Hamas-run interior ministry describing Kühn von Burgsdorff as “a professional figure” who “strongly supports and sympathises with the Palestinians”.

“He is demanding [that the EU] open official channels to engage with Hamas, but the public policy of the EU dismisses this,” the document states.

At the same time, Hamas officials acknowledge that his views did not represent the EU’s institutional position and could change after his departure.

“The positive approach and inclinations of the EU representative to the Palestinian territories and his sympathy with the Palestinian cause are a personal approach, and this might change when the current EU representative changes, since the European position is committed to the red lines of American policies,” the document reads.

Euractiv contacted Kühn von Burgsdorff for comment on Hamas’ assessment of his conduct. He maintained that he acted fully within his mandate and said he has “defended the internationally enshrined right to self-determination of the Palestinian people in full compliance with and implementation of applicable EU policy.”

He also stressed that he consistently represented Brussels’ official stance. “At no point have I made public statements that contradicted the EU’s officially adopted policy towards Israel and Palestine,” he said.

The Hamas report further claims that Kühn von Burgsdorff was “hated by both the Israeli occupation and the Palestinian Authority” and recommends improving coordination and communication between the EU and “Palestinian political, governmental and [Hamas] movement parties”.

Olga Deutsch, vice-president of the Israeli NGO Monitor, said the documents show that Kühn von Burgsdorff “actively worked to undermine official EU anti-terror vetting policies”.

“It is deeply troubling to see a senior EU diplomat engage in open, ideological political advocacy, particularly when it serves an EU-designated terror group,” Deutsch told Euractiv. “In Hamas’ own words, he even ‘demanded’ the opening of official EU channels to engage with a proscribed terror organisation – an appalling subversion of EU regulations and a blatant contradiction of the Union’s public policy.”

She added that the EU must significantly strengthen its internal oversight and vetting procedures. “How can the EU guarantee that its grantees are not engaging in terror glorification if it cannot even vouch for its own diplomats?” she said.

By Nazrin Sadigova