Israeli arms manufacturers are not welcome at Eurosatory, the international defense and land security exhibition which will be held in Villepinte (Seine-Saint-Denis) from June 17 to 21 and where more than 2,000 exhibitors are expected many countries, except Russia and North Korea. “By decision of government authorities, there will be no Israeli defense industry stands” during the 2024 edition of this event organized every two years, announced Friday May 31 to Agence France-Presse, the organizer of the event, Coges Events, a subsidiary of the Land Armament Industries Group ( Gicat).
A statement confirmed by the Ministry of the Armed Forces. The latter believes that “the conditions are no longer met to welcome Israeli companies to the show, in a context where the President of the Republic calls for Israeli operations to cease in Rafah”, the southern end of the Gaza Strip. The Hôtel de Brienne affirms that“ it is urgent to obtain a ceasefire which will ensure the protection of the populations in Gaza, the release of all hostages and full access to humanitarian aid..
According to the show’s website, 69 Israeli exhibitors were expected. After an exchange with the French Prime Minister, Gabriel Attal, Benny Gantz, member of the Israeli war cabinet, indicated that he had asked France to ” reconsider “.
Pressure on Israel increased a notch
Emmanuel Macron said to himself “outraged” by the bombing, on Sunday May 26, of a camp for displaced people in Rafah. The attack left 45 dead and 249 injured. The head of state shortly afterwards denounced, in a telephone interview with Mahmoud Abbas, the president of the Palestinian Authority, the “intolerable human toll” operations in Gaza, which have left more than 36,000 dead and 85,000 injured since October 7, 2023, according to the Hamas health ministry.
Over the past week, pressure on Israel has increased a notch, coming from many states and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). On May 24, even before these deadly strikes, a coalition of several associations (Urgence Palestine, Stop Arming Israel, Aser, etc.) had sent Coges Events an interpellative summons with a view to being summoned to court next week.
She ordered him to “ justify within eight days measures taken to prevent the sale or purchase of weapons likely to be used in war crimes, crimes against humanity, genocide, torture or colonization committed in Palestine and the occupied territories”. The NGOs also heard “prevent the benefit of exhibition exposure from strengthening the economic power of companies likely to participate in these crimes.”
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