On the Gaza war, French diplomacy in search of a compass

Although the war in Gaza shows no sign of de-escalation, Emmanuel Macron is preparing to fly to Jordan. The head of state will stay in the Hashemite Kingdom on Thursday, December 21 and Friday, December 22, where, as tradition dictates, he will share a Christmas meal with French soldiers who have been sent to the “planned air base in the Levant”. Following the October 7 attacks by Hamas on Israel, this will be the Elysée’s tenants’ third visit to the Middle East since hostilities broke out in the Palestinian enclave.

The French president’s previous visits, first to Israel, Egypt and Jordan two weeks after the attacks, then to Dubai on the sidelines of COP28 and to Qatar in early December, highlighted France’s great difficulty in positioning itself. regarding the conflict. A visit to troops participating in Operation Chamal to fight the Islamic State (IS) organization in Syria and Iraq should not escape this context.

“French officials are still trying to figure out where to start. They understood that their message was not getting through because their positions were considered unread.Condemns the regional specialist who prefers to remain anonymous. “We didn’t evolve, these are events”, we defend ourselves in Elysee. Looking back two months, when French diplomacy continued to falter, shifting missteps and muddled initiatives, it is as if Paris, long attuned to the realities of the Middle East, has suddenly lost its pulse on the region.

The tone is set

It all started on October 12 with Emmanuel Macron’s televised speech, full of seriousness. The images of the carnage by Hamas commandos are in everyone’s mind: 1,400 dead (the number was reduced to 1,200 a few weeks later), including several dozen Frenchmen, revelers chased by Kalashnikovs, kibbutzniks slaughtered door-to-door, hostages displayed like trophies. In the streets of the Palestinian enclave… “Absolute Unleashing of Cruelty”It worries the French president, who combines words of sympathy for Israelis, solidarity with the French Jewish community and stigmatization of terrorism, which he cannot face. “There will never be a ‘yes but'”.

“Israel has the right to defend itself by targeting terrorist groups, including Hamas, but preserving civilians, as this is the duty of a democracy.”He is merely warning, while 6,000 bombs have already fallen on Gaza, killing more than 1,300 people. In the ten minutes of the speech, the Palestinians are mentioned only once. As both countries mourn their children, the president has only one side to sympathize with. The tone is set.