Israelis express anger at French move to recognise Palestinian state
Asia
By
AFP
| Jul 25, 2025
Israelis vented their anger on Thursday at French President Emmanuel Macron for his decision to recognise a Palestinian state later this year.
The anger was particularly acute among Franco-Israelis, who called it a "slap in the face" and an "abandonment".
In Sderot, a city just a few hundred metres (yards) from the Gaza border, David Brodey, a 75-year-old retired teacher, told AFP: "I feel betrayed, totally betrayed by the European countries. I hope that others do not follow Macron's lead here."
He called the move "totally unproductive for reaching any solution between us and the Palestinians".
Ross Singer, 57 and a tour guide, said that while he hoped for "a better future" for the Palestinians, he worried recognition "may send the wrong message to the Palestinian leadership about the repercussions of October 7".
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Hadass Zakai, an occupational therapist, said the move was "more antisemitic... than supportive of Palestinians", questioning why Macron was focused on Gaza and not other crises.
Macron's move was prompted by the worsening humanitarian crisis in Gaza, with aid agencies warning of widespread hunger, and failed efforts to bring an end to the war sparked by Hamas's October 2023 attack.
Netanyahu and much of the Israeli right have long opposed a Palestinian state, insisting it would be a security threat and a haven for "terrorists".
Franco-Israeli political analyst Myriam Shermer said "French Jews and French-Israelis feel abandoned by Macron".
"They feel punished by Macron, who multiplies his criticisms of Israel, whereas France, in their view, should have stood by Israel in the fight against Islamist terrorism", he said.
'Encourage antisemitism'
Some Franco-Israelis expressed fear for the impact on Jews in France, where there is growing concern about antisemitic incidents.
"This announcement will have no impact on our lives here but could have grave consequences for Jews in France," said Ariel Kandel, head of Qualita, an organisation that helps French Jews migrate to Israel.
"We are worried, this announcement puts our brothers in France in danger and could encourage antisemitism," he said.
Around 50,000 French Jews have moved to Israel in the past 10 years.
Israeli politicians were forthright in their condemnation of the French decision.
Lawmaker Dan Illouz denounced it as "a gift to the terrorists of October 7, a day on which French citizens were also killed".
Illouz, who is a member of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing Likud party, cosponsored a symbolic motion adopted by the Israeli parliament on Wednesday urging the government to impose sovereignty over the West Bank.
"Macron is following the Vichy path by collaborating with the new Nazis of Gaza", he said, referring to France's World War II era puppet regime.
'Don't turn the other cheek'
The decision also drew criticism from the centre ground of Israeli politics.
"Recognising an imaginary Palestinian state, without defined borders or a government, amounts to a message of support to Hamas," said Karine Dana, the head of Francophone outreach for the main opposition party Yesh Atid.
"It is the abandonment of the hostages held in inhumane conditions in Hamas tunnels and the memory of the victims of October 7," she added.
Pierre Lurcat, a legal expert and author, called Macron's announcement "a slap in the face to the victims of October 7 and the hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza".
"France is decisively positioning itself at the forefront of the anti-Israel camp by seeking to create a fantasy 'Palestine'," Lurcat added.
David Chaouat, a tour guide and author of a book on the Jewish people, said: "The difference between Macron and Israel in the face of terrorism is that Israel, when we get slapped, we don't turn the other cheek."