Tensions are rising between Paris and Tel Aviv. The French Foreign Ministry on Wednesday condemned "provocative" statements by Israeli ministers calling for the "emigration" of the population of the Gaza Strip as well as the re-establishment of settlements in the Palestinian territory.
#Israël | France condemns the remarks of the Israeli Minister of Finance, Mr. Bezalel Smotrich, and the Minister of National Security, Mr. Itamar Ben Gvir, calling for the "emigration" of the Gazan population as well as the re-establishment of settlements in Gaza and its land occupation.... pic.twitter.com/YRXiTv8dzz
— France Diplomacy🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo) January 3, 2024
"France condemns the remarks of Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir" and calls on Israel "to refrain from such provocative statements, which are irresponsible and fuel tensions," the ministry said in a statement.
'Encouraging' Gazans to leave
Itamar Ben Gvir on Monday called for a return of Jewish settlers to Gaza and to "encourage" the Palestinian population to emigrate, a day after a similar call by Foreign Minister Bezalel Smotrich. Also on Wednesday, Itamar Ben Gvir advocated a mass exodus of Palestinians from Gaza, dismissing US criticism as "irresponsible" in his previous statements.
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"The United States is our good friend, but first and foremost, we will do what is right for the State of Israel: encouraging the emigration of hundreds of thousands of people from Gaza will allow (Israeli) residents to return home (to the edge of Gaza) and live in safety while protecting our soldiers," Itamar Ben Gvir wrote on the social network X (formerly Twitter) in response to American criticism.
מעריך מאוד את ארצות הברית של אמריקה אבל עם כל הכבוד אנחנו לא עוד כוכב בדגל האמריקאי. ארצות הברית היא ידידתנו הטובה אך לפני הכל נעשה מה שטוב למדינת ישראל: הגירת מאות אלפים מעזה תאפשר לתושבי העוטף לחזור הביתה ולחיות בביטחון ותשמור על חיילי צה"ל.
— איתמר בן גביר (@itamarbengvir) January 2, 2024
The expulsion of a population from its territory is prohibited by the Geneva Conventions, which are the core of international humanitarian law, and the statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC) designates "deportation or forcible transfer of population" as a crime against humanity. "The United States rejects recent statements by Israeli ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben Gvir advocating the relocation of Palestinians out of Gaza," State Department spokesman Matthew Miller said in a statement Tuesday, calling the remarks "irresponsible."
For his part, Bezalel Smotrich, who heads the Religious Zionism party, returned to the charge on Wednesday, saying in statements reported by the media that "70 percent of the Israeli public supports the voluntary emigration of Arabs from Gaza and their absorption by other countries." According to him, "the supporters of such a humanitarian solution understand that a small country like ours cannot afford a reality where, just four minutes from our localities, there is a hotbed of hatred and terror, where two million people wake up every morning with the desire to destroy the State of Israel."
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Bezalel Smotrich denied the existence of a Palestinian people during a private visit to Paris in March. "There are no Palestinians because there is no Palestinian people," he said. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government, which combines right-wing and far-right parties and ultra-Orthodox Jewish groups, is already accused of having greatly increased the weight of settlers in the West Bank, a Palestinian territory occupied by Israel since 1967.