The Israeli Foreign Ministry accused French President Emmanuel Macron today of launching a “crusade against the Jewish state“ after he called on the international community to toughen its stance on Israel if the humanitarian situation in Gaza does not improve, Agence France-Presse reported, BTA reported.
“There is no humanitarian blockade. This is a blatant lie“, the ministry said in a statement, defending its efforts to allow aid into the Palestinian territory.
“Instead of putting pressure on jihadist terrorists, Macron wants to reward them by giving them a Palestinian state. "There is no doubt that its national holiday will be October 7," the ministry added, referring to October 7, 2023 - the day of the unprecedented attack on Israel by the Palestinian Islamist movement "Hamas", which triggered the war in Gaza.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz openly criticized French President Macron and the UN today, saying that there can be no talk of allowing a Palestinian state in the West Bank - the Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967, where it intends to "expand the Jewish state".
Katz noted that this is a "clear message" to the French president, who was accused by the Israeli Foreign Ministry of undertaking a “crusade against the Jewish state“.
Katz's statement comes a day after the Israeli government announced a massive plan to expand Jewish settlements in the West Bank, condemned by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, who called on Israel to “cease all settlement activity“, which is “illegal and an obstacle to peace“.
Israeli settlements in the West Bank, considered a major obstacle to lasting peace, are regularly criticized by the UN and defined as illegal under international law, and yesterday's statement drew strong criticism from many countries.
“This is [...] a clear message (to French President Emmanuel) Macron and his friends: "They will recognize a Palestinian state on paper, and we will build the Jewish state on the ground here," Katz said, adding: "The paper will be thrown into the dustbin of history, and the state of Israel will flourish and develop."
During his visit to Singapore today, Macron said that recognizing a Palestinian state was "not just a moral duty, but a political requirement," while listing several conditions for taking this step ahead of a UN conference on the subject, which he is expected to attend on June 18.