”Such a move rewards terror”, says Netanyahu in a statement, where he also refers to the terrorist-stamped Hamas bloody attack on Israel in October 2023.
According to Netanyahu, the risk is that a Palestinian state will ally itself with Iran and become "a springboard to destroy Israel”.
”Let us be clear: the Palestinians do not want a state alongside Israel; they want a state instead of Israel”, says Netanyahu.
France actually made the decision already in May, but Macron stated during Thursday that the country will formally recognize a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly in September.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio writes on X that the US regrets France's plans.
”This reckless decision only serves Hamas propaganda and hinders peace. It is a blow to the victims of October 7”, he writes.
Mixed reactions
But France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot claimed on Friday that Macron's initiative goes against what Hamas wants.
"Hamas has always rejected a two-state solution. By recognizing Palestine, France is going against the terrorist organization," Barrot wrote on X.
In France, the reactions have varied from praise from the left to condemnation from the right and a certain silence within the government.
Jordan Bardella, leader of the far-right party National Rally (RN), said that the recognition gives Hamas "unexpected institutional and international legitimacy".
Jean-Luc Mélenchon, leader of the left-wing party The Unsubdued France, called the decision a ”moral victory”.
Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, a right-wing politician with a strained relationship with Macron, declined to comment on Friday.
Germany waits
147 of the UN's 193 member states, including Sweden, have recognized a Palestinian state.
Hamas says in a statement that the group welcomes France's message.
”We see it as a positive step in the right direction towards justice for our oppressed Palestinian people", Hamas writes.
Saudi Arabia and Spain are among the countries that support the French action. Germany said on Friday that it "has no plans to recognize a Palestinian state in the short term".
