Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has strongly criticized French President Emmanuel Macron for calling for an end to arms shipments to Israel during the ongoing conflict with Hezbollah and Iran.
In a French media interview on Saturday, Macron advocated for a “political solution” to the Middle East conflict and argued that Western nations should “stop delivering arms for fighting in Gaza.” He called the continued hostilities “a mistake” and warned against turning Lebanon into “a new Gaza.”
Netanyahu responded with a forceful statement on X (formerly Twitter), addressing Macron directly. He asserted that Israel is engaged in a struggle “on seven fronts against the enemies of civilization,” referring to the conflicts with Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis, as well as Iran and its allies in Syria and Iraq. “All civilized countries should be standing firmly by Israel’s side.”
“Yet President Macron and other Western leaders are now calling for arms embargoes against Israel. Shame on them,” Netanyahu continued, denouncing the move as a “disgrace” and declaring that Israel “would win with or without their support.”
“But their shame will continue long after the war is won,” he added.
Israel’s war with Hamas in Gaza, which will enter its second year on Monday, has claimed more than 41,000 Palestinian lives. The conflict was ignited by a surprise Hamas raid on October 7, 2023, which killed some 1,100 Israelis and led to the taking of around 250 hostages.
In recent weeks, Israel intensified its bombing campaign in Lebanon and began cross-border ground raids targeting Hezbollah sites. The pro-Palestinian group has been firing rockets into Israel in support of Hamas since October 2023. Israeli officials argued that the operation was necessary for the safe return of some 70,000 residents who fled northern Israel during Hezbollah attacks.
While the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) announced that 440 Hezbollah fighters had been killed, the Lebanese Health Ministry reported that over 2,000 people have lost their lives from Israeli strikes and more than 1.2 million were displaced.