Long in Netanyahu: War crime forced transfer of population from Gaza

The French President raised the tone today against the Israeli Prime Minister, again showing “his strong opposition” to an Israeli operation in Rafa. At the same time Macron made it clear to Netanyahu that “coercing the population is a war crime”. During the telephone conversation with the head of the Israeli government, the French leader also reiterated his call for “direct and sustainable ceasefire in Gaza” and condemned “extremely the recent Israeli settlements” as Israel announced on Friday the seizure of 8,000 acres of land in the occupied West Bank in order to build new Jewish settlements there. The French President also informed Benjamin Netanyahu of his intention to submit a draft resolution to the UN Security Council to request “direct and sustainable ceasefire”. Moscow and Beijing objected on Friday to a similar motion for a resolution by Washington, denouncing in particular a “substantial” text. Five and a half months of disastrous war plunged the Gaza Strip into a disastrous humanitarian situation. The French president insisted on Israel opening “without delay and unconditionally all land crossing points that exist towards the Gaza Strip”. The war broke out on October 7 after Hamas’ unprecedented attack on Israeli territory in which at least 1,160 people were killed, most were civilians, according to a French Agency count based on official Israeli sources. According to the same sources, nearly 250 people were kidnapped, of which 130 are still being held hostage in Gaza while 33 are believed to have died. In retaliation, Israel promised to exterminate Hamas, which has been in power in Gaza since 2007. His army launched an operation that already counts 32,226 dead in Gaza, according to the latest account of the Islamist movement’s health ministry.