Newspaper: Israeli red lines disrupted the detainee exchange deal with Hamas

The reaction of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs to the “memorandum” sent by at least 12 French ambassadors in the Middle East to their ministry, to express their protest against the path taken by French diplomacy regarding the Gaza war, which was decided by the President of the Republic, who, according to the constitution, is authorized to formulate policy. His foreign country, while the Ministry’s mission is to put it into practice.

In response to a question posed during her electronic press conference on Tuesday, Anne-Claire Logandere, spokeswoman for the Foreign Ministry, sought to downplay the importance of the “memorandum” by stressing that “any international issue provides an occasion for multiple contributions from our diplomatic counterparts, and their daily function is to contribute to thinking about the situation.” The diplomat.

However, the most important thing is stated in the second paragraph; She says, “Our political authorities elected by the French, whether the President of the Republic or the government, or those responsible to Parliament, or the Minister of Foreign Affairs, are the ones responsible for determining France’s foreign policy. Diplomacy is not a matter of “individual opinions” expressed in the press.”

The bottom line is that “the duty of discretion in expressing personal opinion and loyalty to the state and those who lead it are required of diplomats as well as of all employees.” In short, the Foreign Ministry’s “message” to the disgruntled diplomats who represent their countries in Arab capitals, the content of which was undoubtedly agreed upon with the Elysee Palace, says what it means: “Implement and do not object.”

Le Figaro newspaper was the first to report some excerpts from the “memorandum,” quoting diplomats who had seen it. The most important of its contents is that France’s position on Israel since the beginning of the war is “incomprehensible” in the Middle East, and that it “contradicts France’s traditionally balanced position between Israelis and Palestinians,” and that its results include “France’s loss of credibility and influence and the deterioration of its image in the Arab world.”

President Macron, personally, is criticized for his absolute support at the beginning of the war with Israel and its effort to destroy “Hamas,” and for weeks of preventing him from demanding a ceasefire, which Israel rejected, with American, British, and German support. After Macron, in an interview with the British BBC last week, called for a ceasefire, calling on Israel to stop killing children, women and the elderly, he took two steps backward on Saturday after Israeli and Jewish protests inside France. He returned to calling for a “humanitarian truce that could lead to a ceasefire.”

However, Israeli practices have reached a point where French diplomacy or others are no longer able to look away from what the Israeli army is doing. Yesterday, the French Foreign Ministry, in response to the storming of Al-Shifa Hospital in Gaza, expressed its “deep concern” about the Israeli military operations in the hospital.

It stressed again the “absolute necessity for Israel to respect (the provisions of) international humanitarian law, which specifically stipulates the protection of health infrastructure, such as hospitals, and imposes clear principles, in every place and time, such as the distinction between what is military and non-military, and precaution and proportionality.” The Foreign Ministry added, “Palestinian civilians do not have to pay the price for Hamas’ crimes, especially the most vulnerable people, the wounded, the sick, and humanitarian workers.”

However, Paris, which is accused of bias in favor of Israel, appears to be measuring the consequences of its positions. Hence, it can be understood that it seeks compensation through humanitarian initiatives such as the “International Conference to Assist Gaza Civilians,” which was hosted by the Elysee Palace last Friday, and succeeded in obtaining promises to provide international aid exceeding a billion dollars, including promises of 100 million euros from France.

However, Maurice Gordo Montagne, the former ambassador and advisor to President Jacques Chirac, said in an interview last week with Asharq Al-Awsat that “humanitarian initiatives do not constitute a policy,” and that “history did not begin on October 7,” that is, when Hamas launched its military operation in the Gaza Strip, which, according to Israel, led to the killing of 1,200 people and the capture of 240 others, including Israeli civilians and military personnel.

A former French ambassador to the region told Asharq Al-Awsat, “Paris’ hands seem tied and it is finding it difficult to disengage from the American position, and when it dares, as Macron did in his talk to the British channel, someone comes to hit her on the hands and she backs down.” The source was referring to the violent Israeli reactions to Macron’s statements, and to the protests of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions, which literally adopts the narrative of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

The source adds that “the French public mood” is greatly influenced by Israeli propaganda, but Macron “can overcome it because he will not fight any electoral battles in the future, and therefore he is free in principle from the pressures of the lobbyists active on the French scene.” But there is no doubt that Paris’s policy is affected by the killing of 39 people and the loss of 9 others who are believed to be hostages in the hands of Hamas or other Palestinian organizations.

What is noteworthy is that Paris, which is traditionally active in the Security Council and the General Assembly, appears to be absent this time. As it did not submit any draft resolution in the Security Council, nor did it carry out any significant activity, except for voting against the Russian draft resolution and in favor of the Brazilian draft, which was undermined by the American “veto”.

In any case, Paris still wants to play a role in the Middle East, despite the decline in its popularity and the demonstrations that took place in several Arab capitals, in protest against its positions, as happened in Tunisia, Beirut, and Baghdad. Iraq requested the postponement of the third edition of the “Baghdad Conference,” which was supposed to meet in the Iraqi capital at the end of this month under joint French-Iraqi sponsorship.

From this angle, we can understand the importance of the tour currently being undertaken by Sebastien Le Cornu, Minister of Defense and close to Macron, which he began on Wednesday in Egypt and will lead him to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the UAE and Qatar, and ends on Friday in Israel. What is required of LeCorno is to explain his government’s policy, demonstrate the validity of its principles, and highlight the role that it can (or hopes) to play.

LeCorno visited Lebanon at the beginning of this month, where he spent 3 days, during which he moved to the south of the country to meet with the French force operating within the framework of UNIFIL. Macron had previously sent his Foreign Minister, Catherine Colonna, to the region in the first days of the war. However, the first French person to visit her was Yael Braun-Bivet, Speaker of Parliament, who expressed unlimited support for Israel, without mentioning the need for it to respect the rules of war and international humanitarian law.

Will Macron succeed in finally reaching a point of balance in an extremely complex issue? The question is posed and the answer may be positive or negative, given the factors that influence it and push it in this or that direction.