French President Emmanuel Macron called on Tuesday for Hamas fighters in Gaza to be added to the targets of an international coalition fighting the Islamic State group.
Macron made the call during his solidarity visit to Israel following the October 7 Hamas militants’ assaults.
Macron also stated that the Middle East peace process needed a “decisive relaunch” following conversations with Israeli leaders, whose army is preparing for a ground assault on the Gaza Strip with the stated goal of deposing Hamas.
Macron stated that the Global Coalition against Daesh, or the Islamic State Group (IS), “should also fight against Hamas”.
Macron noted that he had proposed this in talks with Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and with other “international partners”.
“We should build a regional and international coalition to battle against terrorist groups that threaten us all,” he told a joint news conference with Netanyahu.
According to reports, Macron’s proposal “draws inspiration from the experience of the Global Coalition against Daesh and sees what aspects can be replicated against Hamas”.
The coalition was set up in 2014 and says it has 86 “members”—countries and groups such as the European Union and the Arab League.
It has concentrated on combating ISIS in Iraq and Syria, but it also aims to cut off funding to terrorists, share intelligence, and provide assistance to numerous countries, including training Iraqi forces.
Macron was the latest in a long line of Western politicians to express support for Israel’s retaliation against the Palestinian militant group following the attacks, which Israel claims killed 1,400 people, largely civilians.
The Hamas government claims that Israel’s retaliatory assault on the Palestinian enclave has killed 5,791 Palestinians, the majority of whom were civilians. Israel claims that its daily air assaults target Hamas leaders and military targets.
Macron stated that expanding the coalition will assist Israel and its neighbours, who are also “threatened” by Hamas, which the European Union and the United States have designated as a terrorist group.
“The battle must be without mercy, but not without rule, because we are democracies that fight against terrorists, democracies that respect the right to war and assure humanitarian access,” Macron said.
The office of the president said before his visit that he would seek a “humanitarian truce” in Gaza while in Israel, but no mention was made after his talks with Netanyahu.
The French president did call for a “decisive” new effort to move towards a Palestinian state, declaring, “The Palestinian cause must be heard with reason”.
“Israel’s security cannot be sustainable without a decisive relaunch of the political process with the Palestinians.”
Macron was to go to Ramallah on Tuesday for talks with Palestinian President Mahmud Abbas, the Palestinian Authority said.
“Tomorrow I will be with several leaders from the region to concretely advance the agenda we have given ourselves,” he said.
Macron spoke with the relatives of the 30 French victims killed in the October 7 attacks, as well as the nine people still missing, at least one of whom has been confirmed as a hostage.
He stated that the “first objective” of the military effort must be the release of all captives.
Macron, like other Western leaders, informed Netanyahu and President Isaac Herzog that Israel was “not alone” and emphasized how France had also been targeted by militants.
“I think this is our duty to fight against these terrorist groups without any confusion, without… enlarging this conflict.”
Western governments are fearful that the crisis could extend as the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militia trades artillery fire with the army across the Lebanon-Israel border.
Macron specifically mentioned Hezbollah, Iran, and the Huthis in Yemen, saying they should “not take the ill-considered risk of opening new fronts.”
