On September 22 local time, French President Emmanuel Macron, who will step down in May of next year, delivered his final speech at the United Nations General Assembly, strongly condemning the humanitarian crisis in the Gaza Strip.
When talking about the humanitarian situation in Gaza, which has been severely damaged, Macron once slapped the podium forcefully. He said, "If we do nothing about the issue in Gaza, what value does our credibility still have? Some people claim that peace has been achieved, but the delivery of humanitarian supplies has not been restored. This scene brings shame to all of us." Many foreign media interpreted this statement as an indirect criticism of U.S. President Trump.
Mark Lu also criticized Israel's routine violations of the law on the West Bank. He said, every day there are violations of the law happening in that place, and Hamas has not been terrorizing there. "All those claiming Israel's security can be achieved by infringing on other countries' sovereignty are making a fatal error."
According to reports from the Israeli Times, these remarks sounded particularly harsh to Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu. In a statement, Netanyahu’s office criticized Macron’s claims as “absurd and misleading,” and said they were “shocking.” Netanyahu alleged that Hamas terrorists carried out attacks against Jews almost every day, and that they had killed many Israeli civilians on the West Bank. He emphasized that Macron’s claim that Hamas never operates on the West Bank is a complete “absurdity and false information.”
The French side has not yet responded to this issue. A French official told the Israel Times that Macron meant Hamas would not “rule” the region. According to media reports, Netanyahu is expected to give a provocative speech at the United Nations on Thursday.
Netanyahu and Macron have always had a poor relationship. Macron took the lead in promoting the recognition of the Palestinian State at last year's United Nations General Assembly. France's recent sanctions against products from Israeli West Bank settlements, along with those imposed by the UK, have further angered Israel.
