France will recognize ‘Palestine’ but won’t open embassy unless Hamas frees hostages

The comments came as Britain, Australia, and Canada jointly recognized a Palestinian state on Sunday, a step Portugal later followed.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

French President Emmanuel Macron said France’s recognition of a Palestinian state will not include opening an embassy until Hamas frees the hostages it continues to hold in Gaza.

“It will be, for us, a requirement very clearly before opening, for instance, an embassy in Palestine,” Macron told CBS News in an interview taped Thursday and aired Sunday. He is expected to make the formal recognition announcement on Monday during the UN General Assembly.

The comments came as Britain, Australia, and Canada jointly recognized a Palestinian state on Sunday, a step Portugal later followed. The coordinated declarations marked a significant shift in Western policy just ahead of world leaders’ speeches in New York.

In his interview, Macron also addressed the future of Gaza, cautioning against proposals that would involve removing Palestinians from the territory during reconstruction.

“If the precondition of such a plan is to push them out, this is just a craziness,” he said. “We should not be — for the credibility of the United States, for the credibility of France — we cannot be implicitly or explicitly complacent with such a project.”

Macron has defended his decision to proceed with recognition despite criticism at home and abroad.

Israeli officials have repeatedly warned that such moves reward terrorism while Hamas continues to hold captives and refuses to disarm.

A poll published in France this month found that 71 percent of French citizens oppose recognition of Palestinian statehood at this time.

The French leader has insisted that recognition does not mean unconditional support. By linking the opening of a Palestinian embassy to the release of hostages, he sought to address concerns that statehood recognition sidelines Israeli security priorities.

The announcements by Paris, London, Ottawa, Canberra, and Lisbon come against the backdrop of the ongoing war in Gaza, nearly two years after the October 7, 2023, Hamas assault on Israel.

Recognition advocates say urgency is required to preserve the two-state framework, while Israel maintains that such measures amount to a prize for terror.