France defends move to recognise Palestinian state

Paris – France defended its decision to recognise Palestinian statehood amid domestic and international criticism on July 25, including against the charge that the move plays into the hands of militant group Hamas.

President Emmanuel Macron said on July 24 that his country would formally recognise a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September, the most powerful European nation to announce such a move.

Mr Macron’s announcement drew condemnation from Israel, which said it “rewards terror”, while US Secretary of State Marco Rubio called it “reckless” and said it “only serves Hamas propaganda”.

Mr Mike Huckabee, US Ambassador to Israel, quipped that Mr Macron did not say where a future Palestinian state would be located.

“I can now exclusively disclose that France will offer the French Riviera and the new nation will be called ‘Franc-en-Stine’,” he said on social media platform X.

Hamas itself – which is designated a terrorist group by the US and the European Union – praised the French initiative, saying it was “a positive step in the right direction towards doing justice to our oppressed Palestinian people”.

‘The side of peace’

But French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot on July 25 argued that Mr Macron’s initiative went against what the militant group wanted.

“Hamas has always ruled out a two-state solution. By recognising Palestine, France goes against that terrorist organisation,” Mr Barrot said on X.

With its decision, France was “backing the side of peace against the side of war”, he added.

Domestic reactions ranged from praise on the left and condemnation on the right to awkward silence in the ranks of the government itself.

The leader of the far-right National Rally (RN), Mr Jordan Bardella, said the announcement was “rushed” and afforded Hamas “unexpected institutional and international legitimacy”.

Ms Marine Le Pen, the RN’s parliamentary leader, said the French move amounted to “recognising a Hamas state and therefore a terrorist state”.

On the other side of the political spectrum, Mr Jean-Luc Melenchon, boss of the far-left France Unbowed party, called Mr Macron’s announcement “a moral victory”, although he deplored that it did not take effect immediately.

By September, Gaza could be a “graveyard”, Mr Melenchon said.

Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, a right-winger whose relationship with Mr Macron is tense, declined on July 25 to give his opinion, saying he was currently busy with an unrelated “serious topic” linked to the “security of French people on holiday”.

‘Counterproductive’, ‘pointless’

But the vice-president of his Les Republicains party, Mr Francois-Xavier Bellamy, blasted the decision as possibly “counterproductive” or, at best, “pointless”.

The move risked “endangering Israeli civilians” as well as “Palestinian civilians who are victims of Hamas’ barbarism”, he said.

Mr Bellamy said that Mr Macron’s move was a departure from the President’s previously set conditions for the recognition of Palestine, which included Hamas demilitarisation, the movement’s exclusion from any future government, the liberation of all Israeli hostages in Gaza, and the recognition of Israel by several Arab states.

“None of them have been met,” he said.

Among people reacting to the news in the streets of Paris was Mr Julien Deoux, a developer, who said it had been “about time” that France recognised Palestinian statehood.

“When you’ve been talking about two-state solutions for decades but you don’t recognise one of the two states, it’s a bit difficult,” he told AFP.

But Gil, a 79-year-old pensioner who gave only his first name, said he felt “betrayed” by his President.

“As a Frenchman, I’m ashamed to see that tomorrow Hamas could come to power in the territory,” he said.

While France would be the most significant European country to recognise a Palestinian state, others have hinted they could do the same.

Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced he would hold a call on July 25 with counterparts in Germany and France on efforts to stop the fighting, adding that a ceasefire would “put us on a path to the recognition of a Palestinian state”.

Germany, meanwhile, said on July 25 it had no plans to recognise a Palestinian state “in the short term”.

Norway, Spain, Ireland and Slovenia all announced recognition following the outbreak of the Gaza conflict, along with several other non-European countries.

Once France follows through on its announcement, a total of at least 142 countries will have recognised Palestinian statehood. AFP