for Macron, Israel “was created by a UN decision”, Netanyahu responds

Already inflamed, the tone toughened further on Tuesday between French President Emmanuel Macron and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, with a new very firm exchange which this time focused on the role of the UN in the creation of the State of Israel. “Mr. Netanyahu must not forget that his country was created by a UN decision.launched Mr. Macron during the Council of Ministers, according to comments reported by participants, while the war in Gaza and Lebanon was being discussed. “And therefore this is not the time to free ourselves from UN decisions”he continued, addressing, indirectly, the Israeli Prime Minister with whom he then spoke by telephone.

The “decision” invoked by Emmanuel Macron is resolution 181 adopted in November 1947 by the United Nations General Assembly, providing for the partition of Palestine into a Jewish state and an Arab state. The first, Israel, was created in 1948. This sharing plan, rejected by the Palestinians and the Arab countries, and the proclamation of the State of Israel were the triggers for the Israeli-Arab war of 1948-1949. The second, the Palestinian state, has never yet existed. Benjamin Netanyahu was visibly stung by these statements, and made it known with a thunderous response. “A reminder to the President of France: it was not the UN resolution that established the State of Israel, but rather the victory achieved in the War of Independence with the blood of heroic fighters, many of whom were survivors of the Holocaust – notably of the Vichy regime in France”declared the head of the Israeli government in a press release.

Disagreements multiply

This new exchange comes as Paris insistently calls for a ceasefire in both Gaza and Lebanon. And denounces the Israeli strikes in both cases, as well as the Israeli shots judged “deliberate” against positions of the Blue Helmets of the UN peace force in southern Lebanon (UNIFIL), several of whom were injured. The head of French diplomacy Jean-Noël Barrot took care to specify that the declarations of the head of state aimed to remind “the importance for Israel as for all countries to respect the Charter of the United Nations, international law and international humanitarian law”. United Nations Security Council Resolution 1701 states that only the Lebanese army and peacekeepers should be deployed in southern Lebanon and stipulates a cessation of hostilities on both sides of the border.

But Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that the pro-Iranian Hezbollah movement was using “UNIFIL installations and positions as cover to carry out its attacks” against Israel. UNIFIL, with 10,000 men including a contingent of 700 French, denounced “shocking violations” of Israel against its positions, reporting an entry “a force” Sunday of two tanks in one of them. Benjamin Netanyahu also told Emmanuel Macron on Tuesday that he “was opposed to a unilateral ceasefire, which would not change the security situation in Lebanon”according to the press release from his services.

This pass of arms follows another. On October 5, the French president called for “stop providing weapons to carry out the fighting in Gaza”in a message addressed mainly to the United States. “France does not deliver any”he emphasized. “Stop arms exports” used in the Palestinian territory but also in Lebanon is “the only lever” to put an end to these conflicts, he added on Friday, while ensuring that it was not a question of “disarm” Israel. “Shame !”the Israeli Prime Minister exclaimed in a video, estimating that “all civilized countries should stand firmly with Israel” Who “fights the forces of barbarism led by Iran”. The two men had ended up calling each other, already, to “accept their differences”according to a report made by the Élysée, also emphasizing “unwavering commitment” of France for the security of Israel.