Suspect in murder of Tunisian man to appear before French judge: Prosecutors
Christophe B. is accused of killing Hichem Miraoui in an attack Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau described as both 'racist' and 'anti-Muslim.'
Anti-terrorism prosecutors have taken over the case, the first time a far-right racist attack has been treated as a 'terrorist' offense since the unit was created in 2019.
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Arab News
3 hours ago
- Arab News
US targets more ICC judges including over Israel
WASHINGTON: The United States on Wednesday imposed sanctions on four more International Criminal Court judges or prosecutors, including from allies France and Canada, in a new effort to hobble the tribunal particularly over actions against Israel. 'The Court is a national security threat that has been an instrument for lawfare against the United States and our close ally Israel,' Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a statement, using a term popular with President Donald Trump's supporters. Rubio said that the four people targeted from the tribunal based in The Hague had sought to investigate or prosecute nationals from the United States or Israel 'without the consent of either nation.' The four include Judge Nicolas Guillou of France, who is presiding over a case in which an arrest warrant was issued for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The case was brought forward by the State of Palestine, which is not recognized by Washington but, unlike Israel or the United States, has acceded to the statute that set up the tribunal in The Hague. Guillou, a veteran jurist, had worked for several years in the United States assisting the Justice Department with judicial cooperation during Barack Obama's presidency. Also targeted in the latest US sanctions was a Canadian judge, Kimberly Prost, who was involved in a case that authorized an investigation into alleged crimes committed during the war in Afghanistan, including by US forces. Under the sanctions, the United States will bar entry of the ICC judges to the United States and block any property they have in the world's largest economy — measures more often taken against US adversaries than individuals from close allies. Rubio also slapped sanctions on two deputy prosecutors — Nazhat Shameem Khan of Fiji and Mame Mandiaye Niang of Senegal. The State Department said the two were punished by the United States for supporting 'illegitimate ICC actions against Israel,' including by supporting the arrest warrants against Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant. The Trump administration has roundly rejected the authority of the court, which is backed by almost all European democracies and was set up as a court of last resort when national systems do not allow for justice. Trump on Friday welcomed Russian President Vladimir Putin to Alaska even though Putin faces an ICC arrest warrant, a factor that has stopped him from traveling more widely since he ordered the invasion of Ukraine. Rubio slapped sanctions on four other ICC judges in June.
Asharq Al-Awsat
6 hours ago
- Asharq Al-Awsat
Israel-France Row Flares Over Macron's Move to Recognize Palestinian State
A row between Israel and France over Paris's plan to recognize a Palestinian state next month escalated to crisis level on Tuesday when Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu accused President Emmanuel Macron of fomenting "antisemitism". The Elysee hit back, calling Netanyahu's allegation "abject" and "erroneous". "This is a time for seriousness and responsibility, not for conflation and manipulation," the French presidency added. Netanyahu's accusation was sent in a letter addressed to Macron, seen by AFP, which said that antisemitism had "surged" in France following the French president's announcement last month that he will recognize Palestinian statehood. Macron said France would formally recognize a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September -- a move that at the time drew a swift rebuke from Israel. In his letter, Netanyahu said to Macron: "Your call for a Palestinian state pours 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." By announcing the move to recognize statehood for Palestinians, France is set to join a list of nations that has grown since the start of the Gaza war nearly two years ago. France is among at least 145 of the 193 UN members that now recognize or plan to recognize a Palestinian state, according to an AFP tally. France has long advocated for the two-state solution. It has said its move to recognize a Palestinian state goes against Hamas, which rules Gaza and has excluded a two-state solution. In the West Bank, the Palestinian Authority's foreign ministry condemned Netanyahu's remarks, calling them "unjustified and hostile to peace". "The old record of confusing criticism of the Israeli occupation and its crimes or support for the Palestinian people's rights to freedom and independence with antisemitism... has become cracked and exposed, and no one is fooled," the ministry said. - Anti-Jewish violence 'intolerable' - In its response to Netanyahu's antisemitism allegation, the French presidency said that France "protects and will always protect its Jewish citizens". "Violence against the (French) Jewish community is intolerable," it added. "That is why, beyond criminal convictions, the president has systematically required all his governments since 2017 -- and even more so since the terrorist attacks of October 7, 2023 -- to show the strongest action against perpetrators of antisemitic acts," it said. Macron's office added that the allegation in Netanyahu's letter "will not go unanswered". Macron's minister for Europe, Benjamin Haddad, separately said that France has "no lessons to learn in the fight against antisemitism". The issue "which is poisoning our European societies" must not be "exploited", Haddad added. France is home to Europe's biggest Jewish community. Reported antisemitic acts in France surged from 436 in 2022 to 1,676 in 2023, before dipping to 1,570 last year, according to the interior ministry. Netanyahu on Tuesday also criticized Australia, which has similarly said it plans to recognize Palestinian statehood next month. The Israeli leader, on his office's official X account, called his Australian counterpart, Anthony Albanese, a "weak politician who betrayed Israel and abandoned Australia's Jews". The personal attack came amid a diplomatic spat between the two countries after the Australian government on Monday cancelled the visa of far-right Israeli politician Simcha Rothman. Hours later, Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said he had revoked the visas of Australia's representatives to the Palestinian Authority.
Al Arabiya
8 hours ago
- Al Arabiya
Macron denounces Netanyahu's ‘abject' remarks that he fueled antisemitism
French President Emmanuel Macron denounced Netanyahu's remarks as 'abject' and 'erroneous' in response to Israel Prime Minister's accusations that his intention to recognize a Palestinian state is fueling antisemitism. Tensions between Israel and traditional allies escalated in recent weeks following Macron's pledge last month — a move followed by Britain, Canada and Australia but strongly opposed by Israel. Macron's strong comments come as Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese on Wednesday brushed off Netanyahu's accusations that the Australian leader is a 'weak politician who had betrayed Israel' by recognizing a Palestinian state. 'The analysis that France's decision to recognize the state of Palestine in September explains the rise in antisemitic violence in France is erroneous, abject, and will not go unanswered,' Macron's office said in a statement released on Tuesday evening. 'The current period calls for seriousness and responsibility, not generalization and manipulation.' Netanyahu wrote to Macron that antisemitism has 'surged' in France since Macron's announcement that he will recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly next month, in a letter dated Monday seen by the Associated Press. 'Your call for a Palestinian state pours fuels on this antisemitism fire,' Netanyahu said. France is home to Western Europe's largest Jewish population, with an estimated 500,000 Jews — approximately 1 percent of the national population. In recent years, antisemitic incidents have surged in France, with a sharp increase reported in 2023 after the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks in Israel and the ensuing war in Gaza. These include physical assaults, threats, vandalism, and harassment, prompting alarm among Jewish communities and leaders. 'Violence against the Jewish community is unacceptable,' the statement by Macron's office said, noting that the French president has systematically asked all his governments since 2017, and even more so since the Oct. 7, 2023 attacks, to 'take the strongest possible action against the perpetrators of antisemitic acts.' Last week, Israeli airline El Al said its Paris office was vandalized with anti-Israel graffiti, calling the act 'deeply disturbing.' In a separate incident, Macron pledged that no effort will be spared to track down and prosecute unknown attackers who chopped down an olive tree planted in homage to a French Jew murdered in 2006.
