France furious after US ambassador writes to Macron alleging antisemitism, summons envoy

France has summoned the US ambassador Charles Kushner after he accused President Emmanuel Macron in an open letter of failing to tackle antisemitic violence, the French foreign ministry said on Sunday, according to AP.

Kushner, who is Jewish and whose son Jared is married to Donald Trump’s daughter Ivanka, published an open letter in the Wall Street Journal addressed to President Emmanuel Macron. The letter comes amid tensions between France, the US and Israel over recognition of Palestine state and war in Gaza.

He noted that Monday marks “the 81st anniversary of the Allied Liberation of Paris, which ended the deportation of Jews from French soil” during Nazi occupation.

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“I write out of deep concern over the dramatic rise of antisemitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by your government to confront it… In France, not a day passes without Jews assaulted in the street, synagogues or schools defaced, or Jewish-owned businesses vandalised,” Kushner wrote.

He urged Macron to strengthen the enforcement of hate-crime laws and tone down criticism of Israel, arguing that French talk of recognising a Palestinian state had fuelled antisemitic incidents. While “antisemitism has long scarred French life”, he said hatred of Jews “has exploded since Hamas’s barbaric assault on October 7, 2023”.

France quickly rejected the accusations. “France firmly refutes these latest allegations. The Ambassador’s allegations are unacceptable,” the ministry said, confirming Kushner had been summoned to appear on Monday. It cited the 1961 Vienna Convention, which bars diplomats from interfering in a country’s internal affairs.

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Kushner’s intervention followed a letter to Macron earlier in the week from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who also accused the French president of encouraging antisemitism by pushing for international recognition of a Palestinian state. Macron has been one of Netanyahu’s sharpest critics over the war in Gaza, particularly the toll on Palestinian civilians, while Trump has stood firmly behind the Israeli leader.

“Public statements haranguing Israel and gestures toward recognition of a Palestinian state embolden extremists, fuel violence, and endanger Jewish life in France. In today’s world, anti-Zionism is antisemitism – plain and simple,” Kushner wrote.

Macron has repeatedly condemned antisemitism, calling it contrary to French values, and has ordered tighter security at synagogues and Jewish sites since the Gaza conflict began. France is home to western Europe’s largest Jewish community, around half a million people, and also a large Muslim population, both of which have reported a rise in hate crimes linked to the war.

Macron’s pledge to recognise a Palestinian state at the UN in September has already drawn strong criticism from Israel.