French President Emmanuel Macron has called for other countries to stop delivering weapons to Israel that will be used in its war in Gaza.
“France is not delivering any,” Macron said in an interview on Sarurday.
Israel has killed more than 41,000 people in nearly a year of fighting.
Macron urged to seek “a political solution” to the conflict in the Middle East 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.”
“I think that today, the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop delivering weapons to fight in Gaza,” Macron said, adding, the conflict was leading to “hatred” in the region and beyond.
Meanwhile, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has slammed President Macron saying the move is a “disgrace” and vowing that Israel “would win with or without their support.”
“But their shame will continue long after the war is won,” he said.
Directly addressing Macron via X, Netanyahu said, Israel is fighting “on seven fronts against the enemies of civilization,” he argued, 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.”
France maintains that it exports only defensive military equipment to Israel, though it has supplied components for lethal weapons.
The United States provides the equivalent of around €2.7 billion in weapons to Israel each year, making it by far the country’s biggest supplier. Washington has so far declined to cut off exports, despite acknowledging that they have been used against civilians.
Germany, which accounts for an estimated 30 percent of major arms exported to Israel, has also continued to send weapons.
Several other Western countries have moved to restrict sales, including third-biggest supplier Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom, which said last month it was suspending some arms exports because of a “clear risk” that they could be used in a serious breach of international humanitarian law.
The Israeli military has indicated it is preparing fresh assaults around the anniversary of the 7 October attacks by Hamas that triggered its retaliatory operation.