France’s Macron expresses “support and solidarity” with Israel

During a visit to Israel this week, French President Emmanuel Macron called for the Palestinian group Hamas to be added to the targets of an international coalition against ISIS. Macron said the Global Coalition against Daesh, or ISIS, “should also fight against Hamas“. The coalition was set up in 2014 and says it has 86 members - countries and groups such as the EU and the Arab League. It has focused on countering ISIS in Iraq and Syria but is also aimed at cutting off funding to the extremists. Macron also declared that there had to “decisive relaunch“ of the Middle East peace process following talks with leaders in Israel, whose army is building up to a ground invasion of the Gaza Strip with the declared aim of toppling Hamas. Macron’s office said before his visit to Israel would seek a “humanitarian truce“ in Gaza, but no mention was made after his talks with PM Benjamin Netanyahu. He was also due to meet Palestinian Authority president Mahmoud Abbas in Ramallah. The French president was the latest of a string of western leaders to voice support for Israel’s riposte to Hamas after the 7 October attacks which Israel says left 1,400 Israelis dead. Hamas also captured hundreds of Israelis and continues to hold many of them hostage. But for Palestinians, Israel’s relentless and indiscriminate bombing of the Gaza Strip has killed 6055 and injured 15143 others at the time of writing. Of the dead, 2450 were children. In the last 24 hours alone, 700 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes - 300 of them children. #gaza #gazaunderattack #palestine #gazastrip #freepalestine #macron #france #israel