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Macron attends a peace conference in Paris
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French President Emmanuel Macron said in an exclusive interview with the BBC that “Israel must stop killing babies and women in Gaza.”
But he also emphasized that France “unambiguously condemns” the “terrorist” actions of Hamas.
France considers Hamas like Israel, the US, the UK and other Western nations a terrorist organization.
Asked whether he wanted other leaders including from the US and Britain to join his calls for a ceasefire, he replied: “I hope they do.”
After a month of Israeli bombing and a nearly twoweek major offensive in the territory, Gaza’s Hamasrun health ministry said 11,078 people had been killed while 1.5 million had fled their homes.
Israel says it attacks military targets in accordance with international law and takes measures to reduce civilian casualties, such as warnings of attacks and evacuation recommendations.
The day after a humanitarian aid conference in Paris on the war in Gaza, Macron said the “clear conclusion” of all governments and authorities present was “that there is no solution other than first a humanitarian pause, followed by a ceasefire that…” Allow us, (…) to protect all civilians who have nothing to do with terrorists.”
He said it was not his job to judge whether international law had been violated.
“We share Israel’s pain”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu quickly responded to Macron’s comments, saying nations should condemn Hamas, not Israel.
“The crimes of Hamas [está] “What is being observed in Gaza today will be observed tomorrow in Paris, New York and around the world,” said a statement from Netanyahu’s office.
Speaking for the BBC, Macron said France “unequivocally condemns” Hamas’ attacks on Israel on October 7, which sparked the war. In the unprecedented attack they launched that day, Hamas gunmen killed around 1,200 people and took another 240 hostage.
“We share the pain [de Israel]. And we share your desire to get rid of terrorism. We know what terrorism means in France.”
However, he said there was “no justification” for the continued shelling of civilians in Gaza.
“It is extremely important for all of us because of our principles, because we are democracies. It is important in the medium and long term, as well as for the security of Israel itself, to recognize that every life matters.”
Macron said he disagreed with the view that the best way for Israel to “protect” itself was to carry out a major attack on Gaza. For him, this strategy would stir up “resentment and bad feelings” in the region, which would prolong the conflict.
Israel said it would hold fourhour daily military pauses in parts of the northern Gaza Strip as it continued its offensive. However, his defense minister stressed that the breaks were “locally limited” and “would not harm combat operations in the war.”
Against antiSemitism
Macron called on all French citizens to “unequivocally” condemn antiSemitic acts. A march against antiSemitism will take place on Sunday (November 12th), in which a large part of the French political class will take part.
Macron said France probably has the largest Muslim community in Europe and also a large Jewish community. For the French president, given the enormous increase in antiSemitism, all French citizens must unite against this feeling and “share the pain or compassion of the Palestinians.”
Macron also discussed other global issues, including Russia’s largescale invasion of Ukraine.
He said that if Russia won the war, “we would have a new imperial power” in Europe that could threaten other former Soviet states such as Georgia and Kazakhstan, as well as the entire continent.
“Because it is definitely imperialism and colonialism that Russia is striving for [na Ucrânia]”, he said.
The French president said it was a “duty” of all countries to support Ukraine in its defense. But he also said the next month would be crucial as the country struggled to regain land lost in counteroffensives.
He said it was “not yet” the right time for Ukraine to negotiate with the Russians, stressing that the decision to negotiate rested solely with Kiev. But he added that it may be time to “have fair and good negotiations and come back to the table and find a solution with Russia.”
Macron also discussed online extremism a topic of the Paris Peace Forum. He said Meta (Facebook’s parent company) and Google were “simply not delivering” on their promises to moderate hate speech on their platforms.
He said many online platforms do not have enough moderators for Frenchlanguage content (a “disgrace,” according to Macron) and promised to put pressure on companies. He praised TikTok for increasing the number of moderators for its Frenchlanguage content.
Macron said climate change was causing terrorism in some parts of the world, particularly mentioning the impact of global warming on lower water levels in West Africa’s Lake Chad.
“As a result of climate change, many families lived as fishermen [sofrem]… Many species have simply disappeared. And that created guidelines [que] drive many people to terrorism.”