In a fiery address in the Knesset last week, Noam chairman and MK Avi Maoz launched a stinging rebuke against French President Emmanuel Macron and Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, accusing them of fueling antisemitism through their statements on Gaza.
“When a country with a colonial history as violent as France’s — and which still maintains control over multiple overseas territories — starts lecturing Israel on occupation, something’s deeply off,” Maoz said. “France, with its ongoing colonial presence, is hardly in a position to preach to Israel about occupation. It should reflect on its own legacy first.”
According to Maoz, his attempt to raise the issue for urgent debate in parliament was rejected. “There’s a deliberate effort to suppress any open discussion about rising antisemitism,” he claimed. “But the message coming out of Paris isn’t neutral — it’s fueling hate.”
Citing fresh figures from the Anti-Defamation League, Maoz pointed to a 185% increase in antisemitic incidents in France during 2024. “The situation on the ground is speaking louder than any statement,” he said.
He also criticized Macron’s upcoming diplomatic initiative — a planned summit in Paris to promote unilateral recognition of a Palestinian state. “Let’s not call this a peace effort,” Maoz said. “It’s a reward for violence. Moves like this send extremists the exact opposite message from what’s needed — not deterrence, but encouragement.”
Avi Maoz: France’s record on colonialism remains unresolved
Highlighting France’s continued control over territories such as New Caledonia, French Guiana, and French Polynesia, Maoz argued that France’s record on colonialism remains unresolved. “You can’t hold overseas territories in the 21st century and talk about human rights with a straight face,” he said. “When Macron speaks of ending occupation, he should look closer to home.”
Maoz’s criticism came in response to controversial remarks by Barrot, who accused Israel of turning Gaza into “a house of death, if not a graveyard.” Barrot alleged that the obstruction of humanitarian aid and continued military action constituted “a profound violation of human dignity, a complete breach of international law, and a threat to Israel’s own security — a security France supports.”
Barrot also reiterated France’s determination to pursue recognition of a Palestinian state, calling it part of a broader humanitarian strategy and “a shared interest for Israelis and Palestinians alike.”
His remarks drew a strong response from Strasbourg’s Chief Rabbi Harold Avraham Weill — who served as chief rabbi of Toulouse during the 2012 Otzar HaTorah school massacre. In a widely circulated open letter, Weill warned that the minister’s rhetoric risked reviving dangerous narratives.
“I don’t read your comments as a sterile diplomatic position,” the rabbi wrote. “I hear the screams. I remember the silence of the children. This isn’t diplomacy. It’s a moral failure.”
He went further, drawing a disturbing comparison to the language used by Mohamed Merah, the terrorist who murdered Jewish children and a teacher in the Toulouse attack. “Merah justified his actions by saying, ‘Israel kills children, so I kill children.’ When a senior French minister uses similar language, it’s not just irresponsible — it puts Jewish lives at risk.”
His letter quickly spread across Jewish and international media, sparking renewed debate on the impact of political language in times of conflict.
