France, the United Kingdom and Canada have renewed calls for Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), with French President Emmanuel Macron criticising the international community’s response to restrictions on humanitarian aid to Gaza. According to Al Jazeera, Macron made the remarks on Tuesday during his address to……
France, the United Kingdom and Canada have renewed calls for Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), with French President Emmanuel Macron criticising the international community’s response to restrictions on humanitarian aid to Gaza.
According to Al Jazeera, Macron made the remarks on Tuesday during his address to the UNGA in New York, where he also questioned the credibility of countries that continue to remain inactive over the situation in Gaza.
Macron noted that France was among the countries that recognised a Palestinian state a year ago, but questioned the international response to the worsening humanitarian situation.
“What credibility do we have if we continue to remain inactive in the face of Gaza?” he asked.
“Some boast of a supposed peace, but this peace hasn’t reopened humanitarian routes for a single second,” he said, adding: “Must we stand by and watch this spectacle that shames us all?”
Macron also criticised what he described as Israel’s daily “violations” in the occupied West Bank, warning against arguments that Israel’s security depends on violating the sovereignty of neighbouring countries.
“All those who claim that Israel’s security depends on violating the sovereignty of all its neighbours are making a fatal mistake, weakening Israel’s security for today and tomorrow and threatening it,” he warned.
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Macron spoke hours after US President Donald Trump used the same UNGA podium to promote his Gaza peace plan, which he described as a diplomatic achievement.
The White House rejected Macron’s criticism, saying no one had done more for peace and stability in the region than Trump.
Separately, Macron joined UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham, Canadian Prime Minister Mike Carney and Saudi Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud to chair a UNGA meeting focused on Palestinian statehood.
Burnham told delegates that continued failure to achieve a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict could further undermine public confidence in political leaders and international institutions.
“We all live in an era of low trust in politics. Many people in this room, many politicians around the world, have spoken for decades about a two-state solution,” he said. “But if we fail to back those words with deeds, we will further corrode trust in the political, diplomatic and international process.”
Burnham also said the UK had banned trade with Israeli settlements in the West Bank, which he described as illegal under international law.
He described Israel’s E1 settlement project as “a deliberate attempt to block a two-state solution”, saying the development would divide the occupied West Bank and separate it from East Jerusalem.
Meanwhile, Canadian Prime Minister Carney announced that his country would provide 100 million Canadian dollars ($71m) in aid to Palestinians to preserve “the possibility of a two-state solution”.
According to Carney, 80 percent of the funding would be directed towards humanitarian assistance, while the remaining 20 percent would support “peace and security”, including Canada’s multiyear initiative to train Palestinian police in the West Bank.
Carney said Palestinians in Gaza continued to face “immense human suffering”, while Israelis faced “existential threats from Hamas and from Iran and its proxies”.
He also criticised the E1 settlement project and said Canada planned to introduce restrictions on goods produced in West Bank settlements.
Canada is among 12 countries that have announced similar trade restrictions.
