Paris ,August 25(HS):
France has summoned US Ambassador to Paris Charles Kushner after he accused the French government of failing to curb a surge in antisemitism, remarks Paris branded as “unacceptable interference.”
The sharp diplomatic move came after Kushner – who is Jewish and whose son is married to Ivanka Trump, daughter of former US President Donald Trump – published an open letter to President Emmanuel Macron in The Wall Street Journal.
Echoing recent criticism voiced by Israeli leaders, Kushner claimed antisemitism in France had spiralled since the Gaza war began. He said Jewish communities were living under constant threat, citing assaults in the streets, desecration of synagogues and schools, and vandalism of Jewish-owned businesses.
“Not a day passes without incidents,” Kushner wrote, urging Macron to tone down his criticism of Israel and collaborate on a “serious plan” to counter antisemitic violence.
France’s foreign ministry, however, rejected the claims, stressing that “France firmly refutes these latest allegations” and reminding Washington that the 1961 Vienna Convention forbids ambassadors from interfering in a host nation’s internal affairs.
Kushner’s intervention mirrors Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s letter to Macron last week. Netanyahu accused the French president of fuelling antisemitism by pushing for international recognition of a Palestinian state — a step Paris plans to formally take in September.
Macron has defended the move, saying that only a demilitarised, viable Palestinian state living alongside a secure Israel can guarantee long-term peace in the region. At the same time, he has consistently denounced antisemitism as contrary to French values and ordered enhanced security to protect synagogues and Jewish centres amid tensions linked to the Gaza conflict.
The war erupted after Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attacks in southern Israel that killed about 1,200 people and resulted in 251 hostage-takings. Israel’s subsequent offensive has killed more than 60,000 people in Gaza, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry.
Meanwhile, humanitarian agencies have warned of a deepening catastrophe. The Integrated Food Security Phase Classification last week confirmed famine conditions in Gaza City, with over half a million people facing “catastrophic” levels of starvation — a claim Israel has strongly dismissed as “an outright lie.”
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
