Macron Claims Hamas Never Operated in West Bank, Israel's Smotrich Rejects
French President Emmanuel Macron stated at the UN General Assembly in New York on Tuesday that Hamas has never operated in the West Bank. Based on this assertion, Macron questioned the justification for Israeli actions in the region. He also declared that "only a completely sovereign Lebanon can ensure Hezbollah disarms," and described the events in Gaza as "a spectacle that shames us all." More broadly, Macron called for the defense of a rules-based international order against "the law of the jungle."
Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich vehemently disagreed with Macron's assessment, calling it a lie. Smotrich cited the recent murder of Natanel Shokron, who was killed by a Hamas terrorist while bathing with his sons near the Day of Atonement. Smotrich asserted that this was just one of hundreds of attacks orchestrated by Hamas, which he accused of fueling Arab terrorism in the West Bank and being a significant part of its operations.
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