JERUSALEM: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused French President Emmanuel Macron of fuelling antisemitism by moving to recognise a Palestinian state, in a letter seen on Tuesday (Aug 19).
The Israeli leader said antisemitism had “surged” in France since Macron’s announcement last month and warned that the French move rewarded Hamas while endangering French Jews.
Macron said France would formally recognise a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September, drawing sharp criticism from Israel. By making the announcement, Paris would join a growing list of countries that have recognised Palestinian statehood since the Gaza war began nearly two years ago.
A French minister hit back on Tuesday, saying that the fight against antisemitism must not be “exploited”.
ISRAELI CRITICISM
In his letter to Macron, Netanyahu said the French decision poured “fuel on this antisemitic fire”.
“It is not diplomacy, it is appeasement. It rewards Hamas terror, hardens Hamas’s refusal to free the hostages, emboldens those who menace French Jews and encourages the Jew-hatred now stalking your streets,” he wrote.
Netanyahu urged Macron to confront antisemitism directly and called on him to “replace weakness with action, appeasement with resolve, and to do so by a clear date: the Jewish New Year, September 23”.
