Israel-Hamas war: France condemns comments by Israeli ministers calling for “emigration” of Gazans

Tensions between Paris and Tel Aviv are rising. The French Foreign Ministry condemned on Wednesday “provocative” statements by Israeli ministers calling for the “emigration” of the population of the Gaza Strip, as well as the restoration of colonies in this Palestinian territory.

“France condemns the comments of Israeli Finance Minister Mr. Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Mr. Itamar Ben-Gvir” and calls on Israel to “refrain from such provocative statements, which are irresponsible and inflame tensions,” it points out. ministry in a press release.

“Encourage” Gazans to leave the country

Itamar Ben-Gvir called this Monday for the return of Jewish settlers to Gaza and to “encourage” the Palestinian population to emigrate, a day after a similar call by Minister Bezalel Smotrich. This Wednesday, Itamar Ben Gvir again advocated a mass exodus of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip, rejecting American criticism, calling his previous statements on the scenario “irresponsible.”

“The United States is our good friend, but above all, we will do what is good for the State of Israel: encouraging the emigration of hundreds of thousands of people from Gaza will allow (Israeli) residents to return home (to the outskirts of Gaza). Gaza) and live in safety, protecting our soldiers,” Itamar Ben Gvir wrote on the social network X (formerly Twitter) in response to American criticism.

Expulsion of a population from its territory is prohibited by the Geneva Conventions, which form the basis of international humanitarian law, and the statutes of the International Criminal Court (ICC) classify the “deportation or forcible transfer of a population” as a crime against humanity. “The United States rejects recent statements by Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir advocating the resettlement of Palestinians outside the Gaza Strip,” State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement Tuesday, calling the comments “irresponsible.”

For his part, Bezalel Smotrich, who heads the Religious Zionism party, returned to the accusations this Wednesday, confirming in statements published in the media that “70% of the Israeli public supported the voluntary emigration of Arabs from the Gaza Strip and their absorption.” other countries. According to him, “supporters of such a humanitarian solution understand that a small country like ours cannot afford the reality where just four minutes from our populated areas there is a hotbed of hatred and terror, where two million people wake up every morning.” with the desire to destroy the State of Israel.”

Bezalel Smotrich denied the existence of the Palestinian people during a private visit to Paris in March. “There are no Palestinians because there are no Palestinian people,” he said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government of right-wing and far-right parties and ultra-Orthodox Jewish groups is already being blamed for a significant rise in settler influence in the West Bank, Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967.