Macron says Israel PM ‘mustn’t forget his country created by UN decision’

Macron says Israel PM ‘mustn’t forget his country created by UN decision’
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should not forget his country was created as a result of a resolution adopted by the United Nations, French President Emmanuel Macron told cabinet on Tuesday, urging Israel to abide by UN decisions. (AFP)
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Updated 15 October 2024
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Macron says Israel PM ‘mustn’t forget his country created by UN decision’

Macron says Israel PM ‘mustn’t forget his country created by UN decision’
  • “Mr Netanyahu must not forget that his country was created by a decision of the UN,” Macron told the weekly French cabinet meeting
  • “Therefore this is not the time to disregard the decisions of the UN“

PARIS: Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu should not forget his country was created as a result of a resolution adopted by the United Nations, French President Emmanuel Macron told cabinet on Tuesday, urging Israel to abide by UN decisions.

Tensions have increased between Netanyahu and Macron with the French leader last week insisting that stopping the export of weapons used by Israel in Gaza and Lebanon was the only way to stop the conflicts.

France has also repeatedly denounced Israeli fire against UN peacekeepers in southern Lebanon, who include a French contingent.

“Mr Netanyahu must not forget that his country was created by a decision of the UN,” Macron told the weekly French cabinet meeting, referring to the resolution adopted in November 1947 by the United Nations General Assembly on the plan to partition Palestine into a Jewish state and an Arab state.

“Therefore this is not the time to disregard the decisions of the UN,” he added, as Israel wages a ground offensive against the Iran-backed Shiite militant group Hezbollah in southern Lebanon, where the UN peacekeepers are deployed.

His comments from the closed door meeting at the Elysee Palace were quoted by a participant who spoke to AFP and asked not to be named.

UN Security Council Resolution 1701 states that only the Lebanese army and the UN peacekeeping mission UNIFIL should be deployed in southern Lebanon.

Netanyahu on Sunday called on the UN to move the 10,000 strong peacekeeping force, who include 700 French troops, deployed in south Lebanon out of “harm’s way,” saying Hezbollah was using them as “human shields.”

Later on Tuesday, Netanyahu hit back at Macron’s comments, saying the country’s founding was achieved by the 1948 Arab-Israeli war, not a UN ruling.

“A reminder to the president of France: It was not the UN resolution that established the State of Israel, but rather the victory achieved in the war of independence with the blood of heroic fighters, many of whom were Holocaust survivors — including from the Vichy regime in France,” Netanyahu said to a statement.


South Sudan offers to accept more US deportees, Politico reports

South Sudan offers to accept more US deportees, Politico reports
Updated 5 sec ago
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South Sudan offers to accept more US deportees, Politico reports

South Sudan offers to accept more US deportees, Politico reports
South Sudan has told the administration of President Donald Trump it is willing to consider accepting more migrants deported from the United States, Politico reported on Wednesday.
The African country has also urged Washington to lift sanctions imposed on one of its top officials, the report added, citing people familiar with the matter and diplomatic correspondence.
Reuters could not immediately verify the report.

US repatriates a child from sprawling camp in northeastern Syria

US repatriates a child from sprawling camp in northeastern Syria
Updated 49 min 28 sec ago
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US repatriates a child from sprawling camp in northeastern Syria

US repatriates a child from sprawling camp in northeastern Syria
  • The State Department did not give any details about the repatriation, except to say in a statement that the child “has known nothing of life outside of the camps” and will be reunified with their family

DAMASCUS: The United States repatriated an American child separated from their family from a sprawling camp in northeastern Syrian that houses tens of thousands of people with alleged ties to the militant Daesh group, the State Department said Wednesday.

The department estimates that some 30,000 people from 70 countries remain in Al-Hol Camp, most of them wives and children of IS fighters as well as supporters of the extremist group. They include Iraqis as well as nationals of Western countries who traveled to join IS.

Human rights groups for years have cited poor living conditions and pervasive violence in the camp, which the US-backed Kurdish-led Syrian Democratic Forces have administered for years. The SDF are Washington’s key ally in combating IS in Syria and its sleeper cells, and for years have run large swaths of northeastern Syria.

The State Department did not give any details about the repatriation, except to say in a statement that the child “has known nothing of life outside of the camps” and will be reunified with their family.

The US military for years has been pushing for countries to repatriate their citizens from Al-Hol and the smaller, separate Roj Camp. Iraq has taken back an increasing number in recent years, but many other countries have remained reluctant.

“The only durable solution to the humanitarian and security crisis in these displaced persons camps in northeast Syria is for countries of origin to repatriate, rehabilitate, reintegrate, and where appropriate, ensure accountability for their nationals,” the State Department statement read. “The same goes for former Daesh fighters held in detention centers in northeast Syria,” it said, using a different abbreviation for IS.

Despite difficult talks to formally merge with the country’s new rulers under interim President Ahmad Al-Sharaa, Damascus and the SDF in May reached an agreement to repatriate Syrians in the camp. Since the ouster of Bashar Assad in December, Washington has been pushing for the two sides to implement their deal and unify Syrian territory, which would ultimately put the camp under the control of the government.

The SDF did not immediately comment on the repatriation.


China says to hold military drills with Russia in August

China says to hold military drills with Russia in August
Updated 59 min 31 sec ago
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China says to hold military drills with Russia in August

China says to hold military drills with Russia in August
  • Alongside economic and political ties, Moscow and Beijing have deepened military cooperation in recent years as both countries seek to counterbalance what they see as a United States-led global order

BEIJING: China said Wednesday it would conduct joint military drills with Russia in August, including sea and air exercises near Vladivostok and joint naval patrols in the Pacific.

Alongside economic and political ties, Moscow and Beijing have deepened military cooperation in recent years as both countries seek to counterbalance what they see as a United States-led global order.

The drills, named “Joint Sea-2025,” were part of regular bilateral cooperation plans and “not directed against third parties,” Chinese defense ministry spokesperson Zhang Xiaogang told a press conference Wednesday.

After the drills, they will also conduct naval patrols in “relevant waters of the Pacific,” Zhang said.

Last year’s “Joint Sea-2024” exercises were held along China’s southern coast.

The “Joint Sea-2025” drills are due to take place ahead of a planned visit to China by Russian President Vladimir Putin beginning late August.

Putin will attend a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization as well as celebrations, including a military parade, to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II.

He will also hold talks with Chinese leader Xi Jinping.

Relations between the two countries have deepened since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022.

China has never denounced Russia’s more than three-year military war nor called for it to withdraw its troops, and many of Ukraine’s allies believe that Beijing has provided support to Moscow.

China insists it is a neutral party, regularly calling for an end to the fighting while also accusing Western countries of prolonging the conflict by arming Ukraine.

Xi told Russia’s foreign minister earlier in July that their countries should “strengthen mutual support” during a meeting in Beijing.


France, 14 other nations urge recognition of Palestinian state

France, 14 other nations urge recognition of Palestinian state
Updated 30 July 2025
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France, 14 other nations urge recognition of Palestinian state

France, 14 other nations urge recognition of Palestinian state
  • 15 nations including Spain, Norway, and Finland affirmed their “unwavering commitment to the vision of the two-state solution”

PARIS: France and 14 other Western nations called on countries worldwide to move to recognize a Palestinian state, France’s top diplomat said Wednesday.

The foreign ministers of 15 countries late Tuesday issued a joint statement following a conference in New York, co-chaired by France and Saudi Arabia, aimed at reviving a two-state solution between Israelis and the Palestinians.

“In New York, together with 14 other countries, France is issuing a collective appeal: we express our desire to recognize the State of Palestine and invite those who have not yet done so to join us,” French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot wrote on X.

President Emmanuel Macron announced last week he would formally recognize Palestinian statehood in September, provoking strong opposition from Israel and the United States.

France is hoping to build a momentum around the formal recognition of a Palestinian state.

On Tuesday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced the UK will formally recognize the State of Palestine in September unless Israel takes various “substantive steps,” including agreeing to a ceasefire in Gaza.

Starmer’s move, paired with Paris, would make the two European allies the first G7 nations to do so.

In the statement, 15 nations including Spain, Norway, and Finland affirmed their “unwavering commitment to the vision of the two-state solution.”

Nine of the signatories which have not yet recognized the Palestinian state expressed “the willingness or the positive consideration of their countries” to do so, including Australia, Canada, and New Zealand.

Seventeen countries plus the European Union and Arab League during the conference joined calls for Hamas to disarm and end its rule of Gaza, in a bid to end the devastating war in the Palestinian territory.


UK rejects criticism that move to recognize Palestinian state rewards Hamas

UK rejects criticism that move to recognize Palestinian state rewards Hamas
Updated 30 July 2025
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UK rejects criticism that move to recognize Palestinian state rewards Hamas

UK rejects criticism that move to recognize Palestinian state rewards Hamas
  • Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s ultimatum, setting a September deadline for Israel, prompted an immediate rebuke from his counterpart in Jerusalem, who said it rewarded Hamas and punished the victims of their 2023 cross-border attack

LONDON: Britain on Wednesday rejected criticism that it was rewarding militant group Hamas by setting out plans to recognize a Palestinian state unless Israel took steps to improve the situation in Gaza and bring about peace.

The sight of emaciated Gaza children has shocked the world in recent days and on Tuesday, a hunger monitor warned that a worst-case scenario of famine was unfolding there and immediate action was needed to avoid widespread death.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s ultimatum, setting a September deadline for Israel, prompted an immediate rebuke from his counterpart in Jerusalem, who said it rewarded Hamas and punished the victims of their 2023 cross-border attack.

US President Donald Trump said he did not think Hamas “should be rewarded” with recognition of Palestinian independence.

Asked about that criticism, British Transport Minister Heidi Alexander — designated by the government to respond to questions in a series of media interviews on Wednesday — said it was not the right way to characterise Britain’s plan.

“This is not a reward for Hamas. Hamas is a vile terrorist organization that has committed appalling atrocities. This is about the Palestinian people. It’s about those children that we see in Gaza who are starving to death,” she told LBC radio.

“We’ve got to ratchet up pressure on the Israeli government to lift the restrictions to get aid back into Gaza.”

France announced last week it would recognize Palestinian statehood in September.

Successive British governments have said they would recognize a Palestinian state when it was most effective to do so.

In a televised address on Tuesday, Starmer said that moment had now come, highlighting the suffering in Gaza and saying the prospect of a two-state solution — a Palestinian state co-existing in peace alongside Israel — was under threat.

Starmer said Britain would make the move at the UN General Assembly in September unless Israel took substantive steps to allow more aid to enter Gaza, made clear there will be no annexation of the West Bank and committed to a long-term peace process that delivered a two-state solution.