French President Emmanuel Macron warned Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against reoccupying Gaza and urged him to seize what he called a “historic opportunity” to achieve lasting peace through the creation of a Palestinian state, according to a letter sent this week and obtained by Ynet.
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French President Emmanuel Macron, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
(Photo: Yves HERMAN / AFP, Abir SULTAN / AFP)
“The fight against antisemitism must not be weaponized,” Macron wrote, recalling that in 2017 he became the first French president to officially endorse the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance’s definition of antisemitism. He said France remains committed to Jewish security but added that the definition “cannot excuse Israel for the policies it is conducting today in Gaza and the Palestinian territories.”
Macron’s letter combined sharp criticism of Israel’s military campaign with a broader call for diplomacy. He said the occupation of Gaza, the forced displacement and starvation of Palestinians and the annexation of the West Bank would never deliver victory. “On the contrary, these actions will only make your country more isolated, embolden those who use them as a pretext for antisemitism and endanger Jewish communities around the world,” he wrote.
The French leader argued that only a two-state solution could guarantee Israel’s long-term security and regional integration. He said France, working with Saudi Arabia and other Arab and Western governments, had already begun planning for “the day after” in Gaza, including temporary international security arrangements, the disarmament of Hamas and reconstruction of the devastated territory.
“This path is difficult, but it gives Israel a powerful and new hand over its future: a broad normalization in the Muslim world; the end of a long-lasting conflict; the end of a serious worsening of Israel’s moral image,” Macron wrote. “France cannot resign itself to see a friend like Israel descend into a spiral of violence … turning its back on the opportunity provided by history today.”
In closing, Macron called on Netanyahu to “end the desperate race of a murderous and illegal permanent war in Gaza” and to halt settlement expansion in the West Bank. “France will always be a friend of Israel and the Palestinians,” he wrote, urging the Israeli leader to take the “outstretched hand of international partners who are ready to work towards a peaceful, secure and prosperous future for Israel and the region.”
