Egypt’s Rahma Zein Addresses European Parliament on Palestine

Egyptian advocate and podcaster Rahma Zein addressed the European Parliament on April 30th, 2025, during the European Student Forum, emphasizing the role of youth movements in resisting far-right ideologies and and expressing solidarity with Palestine amid the ongoing genocide.

Speaking alongside French Member of the European Parliament and human rights advocate Rima Hassan, who invited her to the forum, Zein warned of the dangers posed by the normalization of violence in Gaza and the continued occupation of Palestine. She called on European students to remain resilient and engaged, highlighting the power of youth activism in challenging political complacency and opposing extremist rhetoric.

Zein issued a direct warning to European politicians, stating, “Europe’s double standards, particularly its failure to uphold human rights in Palestine, do not go unnoticed and will inevitably have a ripple effect beyond its borders.”

She continued, “You can no longer hide behind Israel’s PR machine, or use their key messages to sedate people and give them an excuse to ignore the war crimes committed in the name of Zionism. In one moment in time we saw a young girl called Hind Rajab get shot 355 times by a man with a gun and we looked to your civilized world with your civilized ways and yet you did nothing. In one moment in time an old man went to get his family aid and got struck by weapons so advanced it tore him to pieces and you did nothing.”

Zein rose to broader public attention after confronting a CNN correspondent at Egypt’s Rafah border in October 2023, an exchange that resonated widely and brought international focus to Arab critiques of Western media coverage during the Gaza genocide.