Malta Labour Party MEPs Louis Grech and Joseph Muscat participated in this minute of silence.

Mr Muscat later made his first speech at the EP during a discussion on the situation in Belarus.

He said that goodwill should not stop at the frontiers of the EU and all countries should band together to extend their democratic values to countries in need, like Belarus.

Mr Muscat appealed to the Belarussian government to respect the right of association and the democratic powers in the country. He called on those within Belarussian authorities to work with all their might for democracy to reign.

He concluded his speech by saying that the situation in Belarus is also a result of what European countries did or did not do in the past.