Netanyahu slams Macron over Palestine state recognition
Netanyahu blamed Macron's decision to recognise a Palestinian state for increasing antisemitism in France.
A French minister responded by stating that the fight against antisemitism must not be exploited. Macron announced late last month that France would formally recognise a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September. This announcement drew immediate criticism from Israel.
France joins a growing list of nations recognising Palestinian statehood since the Gaza war began nearly two years ago. Netanyahu wrote that antisemitism had surged in France following Macron's announcement. Your call for a Palestinian state pours fuel on this antisemitic fire, Netanyahu stated in the letter.
It is not diplomacy, it is appeasement, he continued. 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, Netanyahu added. The Israeli leader called on Macron to confront antisemitism with action and resolve by the Jewish New Year on September 23.
Benjamin Haddad, France's minister for Europe, said the country has no lessons to learn in the fight against antisemitism. The issue which is poisoning our European societies must not be exploited, Haddad emphasised. France is among at least 145 UN members that now recognise or plan to recognise a Palestinian state.
Australia joined the list earlier this month, announcing its intention to recognise a Palestinian state in September. Netanyahu also criticised his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese in a social media post. He labelled Albanese a weak politician who betrayed Israel and abandoned Australia's Jews.
This personal attack followed a diplomatic dispute between the two countries. The Australian government cancelled the visa of far-right Israeli politician Simcha Rothman on Monday. Rothman's ultranationalist party is part of Netanyahu's governing coalition.
He had been scheduled to speak at events organised by the Australian Jewish Association. Israel's Foreign Minister Gideon Saar revoked the visas of Australia's representatives to the Palestinian Authority in response. Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong called Israel's reaction unjustified.
She stated that Netanyahu's government was isolating Israel and undermining international efforts towards peace and a two-state solution. - AFP
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Star
8 minutes ago
- The Star
UNIFIL, Lebanese army discover Hezbollah tunnels in S. Lebanon
BEIRUT, Aug. 20 (Xinhua) -- The UN Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) and the Lebanese army discovered two Hezbollah military tunnels in separate areas of southern Lebanon on Wednesday, according to Lebanese sources. UNIFIL peacekeepers found a 50-meter-long tunnel and unexploded munitions near the town of Al-Qusayr during a field operation coordinated with the Lebanese army, UNIFIL said in a statement, adding that all findings were handed to the Lebanese army in accordance with UN Security Council Resolution 1701. In a separate incident, a source from the Lebanese army told Xinhua that the army discovered another Hezbollah tunnel on Litani River banks, west of the village of Deir Mimas, and that army engineering units are clearing the tunnel in preparation for its detonation at a later time. Meanwhile, Lebanon's official National News Agency reported that Israeli forces on Wednesday fired four illumination shells into the Hermon area opposite the villages of Yaroun and Rmeish in the Bint Jbeil district, aiming to ignite fires in the area. Since Nov. 27, 2024, a U.S.- and French-brokered ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel has formally been in effect, ending more than a year of cross-border clashes. The agreement stipulated Israel's withdrawal from southern Lebanon, but the Israeli army has maintained several posts along the border and continues to launch attacks, citing "threats" from Hezbollah. On Monday, the Israeli army reportedly established a new military post in the border region of southern Lebanon.
The Sun
4 hours ago
- The Sun
Military drone suspected in overnight blast near Warsaw
WARSAW: Polish authorities confirmed on Wednesday that an overnight explosion in the country's eastern region may have involved a military drone of unknown origin. Police received reports of a blast occurring in a cornfield near the village of Osiny, located approximately 100 kilometres from the capital Warsaw. The incident site lies in close proximity to both the Ukrainian and Belarusian borders. No casualties resulted from the explosion, though nearby buildings sustained broken windows from the blast impact. Regional prosecutor Grzegorz Trusiewicz stated that preliminary conclusions indicate the object was most likely a military drone. He clarified that investigators cannot currently determine the drone's origin or flight path. The Polish army officially confirmed that no violation of Polish airspace was detected during the previous night. Polish media outlets, citing defence ministry sources, suggested the object could have been a Russian Gerbera drone variant commonly used as a decoy in attacks against Ukraine. This incident follows a 2023 event where a Russian missile entered Polish airspace near the Ukrainian border during a Russian offensive. In 2022, a Ukrainian air defence missile landed on the Polish village of Przewodow near the border, resulting in two civilian fatalities. – AFP
The Star
4 hours ago
- The Star
US forces conduct raid in northern Syria against IS target, sources say
ATMEH, Syria (Reuters) -U.S. forces took part in a pre-dawn raid in northwestern Syria early on Wednesday that targeted a member of the Islamic State group, a U.S. official and a Syrian security source said. A second Syrian security source and Syria's state-owned Al-Ikhbariya said the target was killed as he tried to escape. It was the second known raid in northern Syria by U.S. troops since former President Bashar al-Assad was ousted in December. The Islamist-led government that replaced him has pledged to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State and is part of an anti-IS alliance that includes the U.S.-led coalition fighting the group. It was not immediately clear who the Islamic State member targeted on Wednesday was. The U.S. official said he was a suspected high-value target. The first Syrian source said he was an Iraqi national and was married to a French national. It was not immediately clear what happened to his wife. The Pentagon did not immediately have any public comment on the reports. The operation began at around 2 a.m. (1100 GMT), according to the Syrian security sources and neighbours in the town of Atmeh, in Idlib province. Helicopters and drones provided air cover, one Syrian security source and residents said. Local Syrian forces set up a cordon around the neighbourhood but U.S. forces conducted the actual raid, the second security source said. Abdelqader al-Sheikh, a neighbour, said he was up late with his son and heard a noise in the yard next door. "I called out, 'who are you?' and they started speaking to me in English, telling me to put my hands up," Sheikh told Reuters. He said the armed forces stayed on the roofs of surrounding houses for the next two hours and that he could hear someone nearby speaking Arabic in an Iraqi accent. In July, the Pentagon said its forces had conducted a raid in Aleppo province resulting in the death of a senior Islamic State leader and his two adult Islamic State-affiliated sons. Idlib has been a hiding spot for senior Islamic State figures for years. U.S. forces killed IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi in the village of Barisha in Idlib province in 2019 and his successor, Abu Ibrahim al-Hashemi al-Quraishi, in Atmeh in 2022. (Reporting by Karam al-Masri in Atmeh, Suleiman al-Khalidi in Amman and Idrees Ali in WashingtonWriting by Maya GebeilyEditing by Frances Kerry)
