Jerusalem, Undefined – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu upbraided President Emmanuel Macron in a letter seen by AFP on Tuesday, blaming the French leader’s move to recognise a Palestinian state for fuelling antisemitism.
Late last month, Macron said France would formally recognise a Palestinian state during a UN meeting in September, drawing a swift rebuke from Israel.
By announcing the move, France was set to join a growing list of nations to have recognised statehood for the Palestinians since the start of the Gaza war nearly two years ago.
In the letter sent to Macron, Netanyahu said antisemitism had “surged” in France following the announcement.
“Your call for a Palestinian state pours fuel on this antisemitic fire. It is not diplomacy, it is appeasement. It rewards Hamas terror, hardens Hamas’s refusal to free the hostages, emboldens those who menace French Jews and encourages the Jew-hatred now stalking your streets,” Netanyahu wrote in the letter.
The Israeli premier went on to call on Macron to confront antisemitism in France, saying he must “replace weakness with action, appeasement with resolve, and to do so by a clear date: the Jewish New Year, September 23”.
Benjamin Haddad, France’s minister for Europe, said the country has “no lessons to learn in the fight against antisemitism”.
The issue “which is poisoning our European societies” must not be “exploited”, Haddad added.
France is among at least 145 of the 193 UN members that now recognise or plan to recognise a Palestinian state, according to an AFP tally.
Australia joined the list earlier this month, announcing its intention to recognise a Palestinian state in September.
Netanyahu slammed his Australian counterpart Anthony Albanese earlier on Tuesday, labelling him a “weak politician who betrayed Israel and abandoned Australia’s Jews,” in an angry post on his office’s official X account.
The personal attack came amid a diplomatic spat between the two countries after the Australian government on Monday cancelled the visa of far-right Israeli politician Simcha Rothman.
Rothman, whose ultranationalist party is in Netanyahu’s governing coalition, had been scheduled to speak at events organised by the Australian Jewish Association.
Hours after his visa was cancelled, Israel’s Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said he had revoked the visas of Australia’s representatives to the Palestinian Authority.
In a statement, Australian Foreign Minister Penny Wong said revoking their visas was an “unjustified reaction” by Israel and that Netanayahu’s government was “isolating Israel and undermining international efforts towards peace and a two-state solution”.
