French President Emmanuel Macron, has called on Israel to cease its bombing and killing of babies and women in Gaza, stating that there is “no justification” for such actions.
While recognising Israel’s right to protect itself, “we do urge them to stop this bombing” in Gaza, Macron said
In an exclusive interview with BBC, at the Élysée Palace, he said there was “no justification” for the bombing, saying a ceasefire would benefit Israel.
But he also stressed that France “clearly condemns” the “terrorist” actions of Hamas.
When asked if he wanted other leaders – including in the US and the UK – to join his calls for a ceasefire, he replied: “I hope they will.”
Israel says it attacks military targets in line with international law and takes steps to reduce civilian casualties, like issuing warnings ahead of strikes and calling on people to evacuate.
Speaking the day after a humanitarian aid conference in Paris about the war in Gaza, Mr Macron said the “clear conclusion” of all governments and agencies present at that summit was “that there is no other solution than first a humanitarian pause, going to a ceasefire, which will allow [us] to protect… all civilians having nothing to do with terrorists”.
“De facto – today, civilians are bombed – de facto. These babies, these ladies, these old people are bombed and killed. So there is no reason for that and no legitimacy. So we do urge Israel to stop.”
He said it was not his role to judge whether international law had been broken.
Mr Macron said France “clearly condemns” Hamas’s attacks on Israel on 7 October which sparked the war. Hamas gunmen killed about 1,200 people and took 240 others hostage in its unprecedented cross-border assault it launched that day.
“We do share [Israel’s] pain. And we do share their willingness to get rid of terrorism. We know what terrorism means in France.” But he said there was “no justification” for the ongoing bombing of civilians in Gaza.
“It’s extremely important for all of us because of our principles, because we are democracies. It’s important for the mid-to-long run as well for the security of Israel itself, to recognise that all lives matter.”
When asked, he refused to say that Israel had broken international law in Gaza. “I’m not a judge. I’m a head of state,” he said, adding it would not be right to criticise Israel in this way – “a partner and a friend” – just a month after it was attacked.
But Mr Macron said he disagreed that the best way for Israel to “protect [itself] is having a large bombing of Gaza”, saying it was creating “resentment and bad feelings” in the region that would prolong the conflict.
After a month of Israeli bombardment and nearly two weeks after Israel launched a major ground offensive into the territory, Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry said on Friday that 11,078 people had been killed, while 1.5 million had fled their homes.
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“It’s extremely important for all of us because of our principles, because we are democracies. It’s important for the mid-to-long run as well for the security of Israel itself, to recognise that all lives matter.” When asked, he refused to say that Israel had broken international law in Gaza.
