“인종청소 자행 이스라엘과 협력 끊어야”…프랑스·영국 전직 대사 102명 촉구

A group of 102 former French and British ambassadors have called for an end to cooperation with Israel over its "ethnic cleansing" of Palestinians. In a joint statement published in Le Monde on the 22nd, they urged France and Britain to take action against the country. The ambassadors criticized Israel for its violent actions in Gaza, where over 200,000 Palestinians are living in a devastated area, and called for strong condemnation of these actions.

They noted that over 1,200 Palestinians were killed after the ceasefire between Hamas and Israel in October 2025. The ambassadors stated that Israel's actions constitute "genocide and crimes against humanity." They also criticized Israel for its policies in East Jerusalem and the West Bank, which they called systematic destruction of Palestinians.

The statement emphasized that the world no longer views Israel as a true democracy, and that it has no right to take another's land and rights. The ambassadors called for France and Britain to lead joint action with other countries in the Global South, the Euro-Mediterranean region, and the Francophonie to ensure that Palestine and Israel have equal rights, self-determination, justice, and security.

France and Britain had previously recognized Palestine as a state at the UN General Assembly in September last year. The statement demanded an end to various EU-Israel and UK-Israel agreements, including the trade and partnership agreement, and the suspension of all military cooperation with Israel. They also called for specific sanctions on Israeli settlement activities, particularly on companies involved in the controversial E1 settlement area, which could lead to the physical partition of Palestine.