France’s envoy to the UN, Nicolas de Riviere, stated on Tuesday that the country would not support the forced displacement of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip by Israel.
“France is opposed to the forced displacement of populations. That’s very clear-cut… We will not support the forced displacement of people. It’s more or less obvious that the Gaza Strip is inhabited by Palestinians.”
The ambassador made the statement after Israeli officials called for the “voluntary evacuation” of Palestinians from Gaza and urged various countries to accept Palestinians coming from the enclave.
Our goal is for Palestinians to be able to continue living there in safety and security and under good conditions. That should be the priority.
De Riviere declared that removing people from Gaza or repopulating the region are “harebrained ideas,” adding that it was essential to put an end to the military operation and not target civilians.
“Palestinians should be able to live in peace in their homes, and the bombing of civilians in the Gaza Strip should end. Hospitals, schools have been destroyed… We want that to end.”
He also noted that Hamas “is using the civilian population as human shields, is hiding in schools.”
That is true. However, whenever there’s a doubt, you shouldn’t bomb schools.
Israel launched aerial and ground assaults on the Gaza Strip following a cross-border Hamas attack on October 7.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry, at least 22,185 Palestinians were killed with another 57,035 injured. The Hamas attack, meanwhile, is believed to have killed about 1,200 Israelis.
