On Tuesday, August 26, Emmanuel Macron personally responded to a letter from Benjamin Netanyahu, sent on August 17, in which the Israeli prime minister expressed his concern about “the alarming rise of antisemitism in France.”
“The fight against antisemitism must not be weaponized and will not fuel any discord between Israel and France,” wrote the French president in his letter, which was seen by Le Monde.
“Protecting France’s Jewish citizens from the rise in antisemitism has been an absolute priority of mine from day one,” and “must not be the subject of manipulation amid the politicization of a conflict that is not France’s but that is affecting its national cohesion and the security of its citizens,” Macron wrote. “It would be wrong to explain, or even justify, antisemitism in France through the decisions that I have made,” he added.
While Netanyahu accused Macron of pouring “fuel on this antisemitic fire” by wanting to recognize the State of Palestine in September, the French president justified his decision. “Our determination to ensure that the Palestinian people have a State is rooted in our belief that a lasting peace is essential to the State of Israel’s security, to its full regional integration in a Middle East at last at peace, and to a shift towards normalization that we support and that must be allowed to come to fruition as swiftly as possible. This lasting peace will be brought about by a sovereign Palestinian State, recognizing Israel and its right to security, demilitarized and living peacefully alongside you.”
On August 19, the Elysée Palace had described the Israeli prime minister’s statements as “abject” and “erroneous.”
The recognition of the State of Palestine did not “reflect any sort of tolerance of Hamas or any other terrorist group using that State to threaten your country in the future,” asserted Macron, while Netanyahu saw the French president’s gesture as a “reward” for “Hamas terror” or even encouragement for “those who menace French Jews.”
