A growing faction in the European Parliament is demanding the European Union recognize the Palestinian unity government and bring an end to the economic sanctions against Hamas.

“If we don’t end the boycott, the region will descend into civil war and al-Qaeda-type terrorist groups will emerge,” Belgian Socialist lawmaker Veronique De Keyser said before a Wednesday parliamentary debate with the EU’s foreign policy chief Javier Solana.

“The only solution is to recognize the government …” she said.

De Keyser is one of about 250 members in the 785-member European Parliament who want EU member states to change their stance toward Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.

A delegation defied the EU ban on direct contact with Hamas ministers and met with Palestinian Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh in the Gaza Strip.

These meps fear the boycott has been counterproductive, failing to persuade Hamas to become moderate and contributing to the violence between rival Palestinian factions. Already the Palestinian-on-Palestinian violence has claimed 271 lives this year, after taking 345 in 2006.

De Keyser and her colleagues are taking aim at a decision that was made immediately after Hamas leaders won Palestinian elections in January of 2006. The EU, as well as the U.S., the United Nations and Russia, has refused to formally recognize Hamas. Before the EU will recognize the group’s government, it insists that Hamas agree to recognize Israel, to respect existing agreements between Israel and the Palestinians, and to renounce violence. Because it has not met these conditions, Hamas has been denied its international aid money.

The time that Hamas has been in power has been a disaster for Palestinians. But rather than point to the clear failings of Hamas leaders—not only to abandon their terrorist ideals but even to provide decent services to their own people—De Keyser and like-minded parliamentarians blame their own nations. They are correct in their assessment that withholding aid hasn’t convinced Hamas to turn moderate. But the idea that simply removing the conditions for receiving international aid is a better solution is not only foolhardy, it is also dangerous.

Thankfully, an end to the boycott is not up to these parliamentarians. The EU parliament has no decision-making power in this area because foreign policy is determined solely by national governments. Still, the thinking behind this demand is not uncharacteristic of Europe, whose dealings in the Arab-Jew conflict have often been alarmingly biased against Israel.

De Keyser recently said she wanted to “strangle” Israeli diplomats for talking about Israeli security. At the same time, she praised the Palestinians for their “moderation and maturity.”

It is worth remembering that fact in the time ahead as Israel’s requests for help from Europe in resolving the quagmire increase.