Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu criticized French President Emmanuel Macron and other Western leaders for their calls to stop arms shipments to Israel for use in Gaza.
At a summit in Paris on Saturday, the French president reiterated his concern about the continuation of the conflict in Gaza despite calls for a ceasefire. He also criticized Israel's decision to send ground troops to Lebanon.
Macron said that “the priority is that we return to a political solution, that we stop handing over weapons to fight in Gaza,” the BBC reported.
French President Emmanuel Macron. [PHOTO CREDIT: Official Facebook page of Emmanuel Macron]
In a video released by his office on Sunday, Netanyahu said, “Shame on them,” referring to Macron and other Western leaders who have called for an arms embargo on Israel.
“As Israel fights the forces of barbarism led by Iran, all civilized countries should stand firmly at Israel's side, yet President Macron and other Western leaders are now calling for arms embargoes against Israel. What a shame for them,” Netanyahu said.
“Israel will win with or without your support,” adding that calling for an arms embargo was “a disgrace.”
In an interview with the French broadcaster, the BBC reported that Macron had said that “France is not delivering any” weapons to Israel.
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And he added: “I think they are not listening to us.”
“I think it is a mistake, even for Israel's security,” Macron said, adding that the conflict was generating “hatred.”
The French president also said that avoiding an escalation in Lebanon was a “priority” and that “Lebanon cannot become a new Gaza.”
Despite the slaughter of thousands of civilians, Netanyahu said Israel “is defending itself against this barbarism, Israel is defending civilization against those who seek to impose a dark era of fanaticism on us all. Rest assured that Israel will fight until the battle is won, for our sake and for the sake of peace and security in the world.”
Macron's office later said France is a “firm friend of Israel,” adding that Netanyahu's reaction was “excessive and far from the friendship between France and Israel.”
While both the United States and France had called for a ceasefire in Lebanon, Macron said: “I regret that Prime Minister Netanyahu has made another decision and has assumed this responsibility, in particular, for ground operations on Lebanese soil.”
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Monday will mark the one-year anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, in which some 1,200 people were killed and another 251 taken hostage.
The coastal strip of land has been under siege for a year and more than 41,000 people have died in Gaza as a result of the Israeli offensive, with few signs of a peace deal in sight.
Israel has vowed to continue its attack on Gaza until Hamas, which ruled Gaza, is eradicated.
Gaza also faces a serious humanitarian emergency, with a report from an international authority on famine warning that “famine was imminent” in northern Gaza and that escalating war could lead to half of the 2.3 million inhabitants of the territory on the verge of starvation.