According to French President Emmanuel Macron, Israel needs to stop murdering women and newborns in Gaza, the BBC said.
He declared that there was “no justification” for the bombing in an exclusive interview at the Élysée Palace, adding that Israel would gain from a truce.
He noted that whilst acknowledging Israel’s right to self-defense, “we do urge them to stop this bombing” in Gaza.
However, he also emphasised that France “clearly condemns” Hamas’s “terrorist” activities.
Like Israel, the United States, the United Kingdom, and other Western countries, France views Hamas as a terrorist organisation.
When questioned about whether he wanted other world leaders to support his calls for a ceasefire, including those in the US and the UK, he said, “I hope they will.”
Following nearly two weeks of Israel’s main ground offensive into the territory and a month of Israeli bombardment, the health ministry headed by Hamas in Gaza announced on Friday that 11,078 Palestinians had died and 1.5 million had fled their homes.
Israel claims that it follows international law when attacking military targets and that it takes precautions to lessen the number of civilian casualties by alerting people in advance and urging them to flee.
Speaking about the conflict in Gaza the day after a conference on humanitarian aid was held in Paris, Mr. Macron stated that all of the governments and agencies in attendance at the meeting had come to the “clear conclusion” that the only option available to them was to first implement a humanitarian pause before a ceasefire that would allow them to protect all civilians who had no connection to terrorists.
“De facto: civilians are bombarded today; this is true. These women, these children, these elderly people are bombed to death. Thus, there is no justification and no legality for such. Thus, we do implore Israel to halt.”
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He declared that determining whether or not international law had been broken was not his place.
In a swift response to Mr. Macron’s remarks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that countries had to denounce Hamas, not Israel.
According to a statement from Mr. Netanyahu’s office, “the crimes that Hamas [is] committing today in Gaza will be committed tomorrow in Paris, New York, and anywhere in the world.”
After the first day of the annual Paris Peace Forum, President Macron spoke with reporters about a variety of topics, including:
Speaking first of Gaza, Mr. Macron declared that France “clearly condemns” the strikes carried out by Hamas on Israel on October 7, which set off the war. In an unprecedented cross-border attack that day, Hamas terrorists killed over 1,200 people and kidnapped 240 others.
“Yes, we are in anguish with [Israel]. Furthermore, we do support their desire to eradicate terrorism. In France, we understand what terrorism entails.” However, he declared that there was “no justification” for the bombardment of Gaza’s civilian population.
Given our democratic ideals, it is of utmost importance to each and every one of us. Realising that every life matters is crucial for both Israel’s security in the medium to long term.
