“We will not give in to anti-Semitism,” says Emmanuel Macron before the match

The head of state will be present Thursday at the Stade de France, just like Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande, while the match is classified as high risk.

“We will not give in to anti-Semitism anywhere and violence, including in the French Republic, will never prevail, and neither will intimidation,” declared Emmanuel Macron on BFMTV, Thursday November 14 before the match high-risk France-Israel football match, which he will attend at the Stade de France. Nicolas Sarkozy and François Hollande, his two predecessors, will also be present, as will Prime Minister Michel Barnier.

According to the Elysée, the head of state spoke with the Israeli president, Isaac Herzog, and the Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, before the meeting. “The President of the Republic called, with each of the two leaders, for this match to take place in a spirit of respect and solidarity, in accordance with the values ​​of sport. The Head of State then presented the system to each security measures put in place and assured them of France's mobilization to ensure the smooth running of the match.”explains the presidency.

The match between France and Israel, which is taking place in a tense context due to the war in the Middle East and the recent violence in Amsterdam on the sidelines of a Maccabi Tel-Aviv match, mobilizes 4,000 police and gendarmes. While some elected officials called for a cancellation or relocation of the match, the Minister of the Interior, Bruno Retailleau, decided to keep this match at the Stade de France. “France is not backing down because that would amount to abdicating in the face of threats of violence and anti-Semitism”he justified.