Israel on Friday accused President Emmanuel Macron of undertaking a "crusade against the Jewish state" after the French leader said the recognition of a Palestinian state was a "moral duty" as well as a "political necessity". At a press conference in Singapore, Macron called on European countries to harden their stance on Israel unless the humanitarian crisis in Gaza improved.
Issued on: 30/05/2025 -
By: FRANCE 24
Israel's foreign ministry on Friday issued a blistering response to French President Emmanuel Macron's call for the recognition of a Palestinian state.
"President Macron’s Crusade Against the Jewish State Continues," said an Israeli foreign ministry statement posted on X. "The facts do not interest Macron. There is no humanitarian blockade. That is a blatant lie."
The UN on Friday repeated its warning that the entire population of Gaza was at risk of famine following Israel's intensification of its military offensive against Hamas, drawing global condemnation over the dire humanitarian conditions in the besieged Palestinian enclave.
"Gaza is the hungriest place on earth," Jens Laerke, a spokesman for the UN humanitarian agency OCHA, said on Friday. "It's the only defined area – a country or defined territory within a country – where you have the entire population at risk of famine. One hundred percent of the population at risk of famine."
Speaking at a press conference in Singapore on Friday, Macron called on European countries to "harden the collective position" against Israel if it does not respond appropriately to the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
He also asserted recognition of a Palestinian state with conditions was "not only a moral duty, but a political necessity".
If there was no response in line with the humanitarian situation in Gaza "in the coming hours and days ... we will have to harden our collective position," said Macron.
Food trucks in Gaza raided, underscoring aid distribution problems
This meant dropping an assumption that human rights were being respected "and apply sanctions", the French leader said hours before addressing a defence summit in the city-state.
Defence Minister Israel Katz vowed on Friday to build a "Jewish Israeli state" in the occupied West Bank, a day after the government announced the creation of 22 new settlements in the territory.
"This is a decisive response to the terrorist organisations that are trying to harm and weaken our hold on this land – and it is also a clear message to (French President Emmanuel) Macron and his associates: they will recognise a Palestinian state on paper – but we will build the Jewish Israeli state here on the ground," Katz was quoted as saying in a statement from his office.
Macron and US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth are among the world leaders, diplomats and top defence officials in Singapore this weekend for the Shangri-La Dialogue security forum.
'Double standards' put EU 'credibility at stake'
In his keynote address to the Shangri-La forum on Friday, Macron acknowledged the perception, in Asia, of the West's "double standards" of calling for cooperation in the Ukraine crisis while giving "a free pass" to Israel. "Our credibility is at stake," Macron told participants at the opening session of the security conference.
In its published Indo-Pacific strategy, France has underscored the need to “preserve a rules-based international order” in the face of “China's increasing power and territorial claims” and its global competition with the United States.
France's own ties to the Indo-Pacific are strong, with more than 1.6 million of its citizens living in the region in French overseas territories.
Macron is on a diplomatic tour in Southeast Asia that also saw him visit Vietnam and Indonesia earlier this week.
While in Jakarta, Macron and Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto issued a joint statement condemning Israeli plans to take control of Gaza and any moves to "forcibly remove the Palestinian population from their homeland".
10:51© France 24
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Paris hoped to "trigger a movement of recognition for a Palestinian state under certain conditions", including the demilitarisation of Hamas and recognition of Israel's right to exist and protect itself, Macron said in the Indonesian capital.
The humanitarian situation in Gaza remained dire despite aid beginning to trickle back into the territory after a more than two-month Israeli blockade.
Food security experts said starvation was looming for one in five people.
Israel has also intensified its military offensive in what it said was a renewed push to destroy Hamas, whose October 7, 2023 attack triggered the war.
(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)
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