A defense in the face of recent controversies. The president of the National Rally Jordan Bardella advanced on RTL this Monday morning that his party was "probably the best shield of the Jews of France", the day after marches against anti-Semitism that brought together some 182,000 people in France according to the Ministry of the Interior, including 105,000 in Paris.
This initiative by the president of the National Assembly, Yaël Braun-Pivet, and the president of the Senate, Gérard Larcher, in the context of the war between Israel and Hamas, had largely divided the political class, with some, such as government spokesman Olivier Véran, believing that the RN was not "in its place".
'Greeted with a certain warmth'
"This march had a lot of height, a lot of dignity and allowed us to tell our compatriots of Jewish faith that they were not alone," said Jordan Bardella, who demonstrated on Sunday at the back of the procession alongside Marine Le Pen. "We were in the midst of the French (...) We were greeted with a certain warmth," defended the RN president, who acknowledged some "minimal incidents" described as "anecdotal" and coming from a "far-left collective".
March against anti-Semitism: "A lot of dignity, a moment of truth"@J_Bardella in #RTLMatin with @amandine_begot pic.twitter.com/8EH6GenYtx
— RTL France (@RTLFrance) November 13, 2023
Also asked about the absence of French President Emmanuel Macron from the march on Sunday, Jordan Bardella said he had "missed an appointment with history". Emmanuel Macron had indirectly justified his absence in a letter published in our columns on Saturday. "The President of the Republic is not judged by what he says, but by what he does," Jordan Bardella retorted. "I think his presence would have given more legitimacy to the fight against anti-Semitism," he added. "The fight against anti-Semitism is also the cause of all French people, our role was to be there."
Jordan Bardella then wondered about "the follow-up to be given to this march". "It must be the basis for a political, moral, legal and security surge to put the national community out of the reach of its enemies," he said. According to him, France must lead "a war against Islamic fundamentalism which represents the ideology of Hamas in France".