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So much for his pious proclamations about protecting France’s Jews, or Israel’s. No doubt he is more afraid of France’s Moslem colonists. [IsraelTimes] French President Emmanuel Macron further hits out at Israel over the war with Hamas in Gaza, amid an escalating war of words between Jerusalem and Paris.
“If we abandon Gaza, if we consider there is a free pass for Israel, even if we do condemn the terrorist attacks, we will kill our credibility,” Macron tells a top defense forum in Singapore, adding: “And this is why we do reject double standard.
Israel accuses France’s Macron of ‘crusade against the Jewish state’
[IsraelTimes] After France’s president says European countries should adopt a tougher stance against Israel if it doesn’t change its humanitarian aid policies in Gaza, Israel accuses Emmanuel Macron of embarking on a “crusade against the Jewish state.”
The reference to a crusade is a loaded charge. French knights and religious leaders played a leading role in the medieval religious wars launched by European Christians — widely referred to as the Franks — primarily to free the Holy Land from Muslim rule. Jews in France, German-speaking territories and the Land of Israel were targeted by Crusaders in bouts of extreme violence.
Jews still read agonizing poems from the period on Tisha B’Av, their national day of mourning.
“The facts do not interest Macron,” says the Foreign Ministry in a post on X. “There is no humanitarian blockade. That is a blatant lie. Israel is currently facilitating the entry of aid to Gaza through two parallel efforts.”
The Foreign Ministry points to the entry of almost 900 aid trucks into Gaza this week, and the debut of the Gaza Humanitarian Fund distribution sites, which have delivered over two million meals in four days, according to its own account. Aid deliveries to Gaza resumed last week after Israel barred goods from entering the enclave on March 2.
“Instead of applying pressure on the jihadist terrorists, Macron wants to reward them with a Palestinian state,” says the Foreign Ministry. “No doubt its national day will be October 7.”
Macron said earlier today that recognition of a Palestinian state, with conditions, is “not only a moral duty, but a political necessity.”
France is considering recognizing a Palestinian state ahead of a United Nations conference, which France and Saudi Arabia are co-hosting between June 17-20, to lay out the parameters for a roadmap to a Palestinian state, while ensuring Israel’s security.
“It is against Israel — under attack on multiple fronts in an attempt to destroy it — that Macron seeks to impose sanctions,” continues the Foreign Ministry.
“Hamas, for its part, has already praised Macron’s statements. Hamas knows why.”
At old-new settlement, Katz lashes out at Macron: Recognition of Palestinian state ‘on paper’ will be met with settlements ‘on the ground’
[IsraelTimes] On a visit to the site of the Sa-Nur settlement, Defense Minister Israel Katz hits out at French President Emmanuel Macron, who said earlier today that the recognition of a Palestinian state, with conditions, is a “moral duty.”
Katz’s visit to the West Bank comes after the Israeli government approved the construction of 22 new settlements, including the reestablishment of Sa-Nur, which was evacuated in 2005 alongside Israel’s disengagement from the Gaza Strip.
Lauding the government’s decision as a “historic moment” for the settler movement, Katz says it also serves as a “clear message to Macron and his friends.”
“They will recognize a Palestinian state on paper — and we will build the Jewish-Israeli state on the ground. The paper will be thrown in the trash can of history and the State of Israel will flourish and prosper,” Katz declares.
“Do not threaten us with sanctions because you will not bring us to our knees. The State of Israel will not bow its head in the face of threats,” the defense minister says. “We are a people with a long and glorious history. We will stand tall and continue to lead the State of Israel on a safe and strong path, until victory.”
Katz is accompanied on his visit by Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan, IDF Central Command chief Maj. Gen. Avi Bluth, Civil Administration chief Brig. Gen. Hisham Ibrahim, and Defense Ministry military secretary Brig. Gen. Guy Markizeno.
He says that his connection to Sa-Nur is a personal one, as he served there as a paratrooper during his military service and later “fought against uprooting the settlement as part of the disengagement plan.”
“I promised then that we would return and today we have returned here, with the decision to re-establish the settlement, along with the establishment of 21 additional new settlements in Judea and Samaria,” says Katz, referring to the West Bank by its Biblical name.
“This is a historic moment for settlement in Judea and Samaria, which will bolster it as Israel’s protective wall, and will also strengthen security in this region,” he says of the new settlements.
And, he says, it is a “crushing response” to the terror organizations that are trying to harm and weaken our hold on this region of the country.”
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