File – Far-right Israeli MP Itamar Ben Gvir gestures after the release of post-election poll results at his party headquarters in Jerusalem, November 2, 2022. (AP Photo/Oren Ziv, File)
France announced that it has barred Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben Gvir from entering the country after he posted videos that appeared to mock and intimidate pro-Palestinian activists detained aboard an aid flotilla heading to Gaza.
The video shared by the Israeli minister also sparked widespread international condemnation and renewed calls to impose European sanctions on the far-right minister.The French Foreign Minister announced the move in a post on the X website, accusing Ben Gvir of “unspeakable” behavior towards French and European citizens who were among hundreds of activists intercepted by Israeli forces in international waters earlier this week. “As of today, Itamar Ben Gvir is prohibited from entering French territory. This decision comes in the wake of his unspeakable actions towards French and European citizens who were passengers on board the Global Resilience Fleet,” Barrow wrote.
“We cannot tolerate French citizens being threatened, intimidated or brutalized in this way – especially by a public official,” he added, while also urging the European Union to impose bloc-wide sanctions on the Israeli minister.
The ban comes after a video posted by Ben Gvir on Wednesday sparked outrage across Europe and among rights groups. In a post on X, he shared a video of detained Fleet activists with the caption: “This is how we accept supporters of terrorism. Welcome to Israel.”In one of the clips, the minister appears waving a large Israeli flag over the bent-over detainees whose hands appear to be tied. Another clip of the video showed him shouting “Am Yisrael Shay” – in Hebrew, which means “The nation of Israel lives” – at a kneeling activist with his wrists bound.
The footage also showed detainees kneeling with their foreheads pressed to the ground inside an external detention area while the Israeli national anthem was played and armed guards surrounded them. The clips were titled “Welcome to Israel.”Israeli forces intercepted the convoy in international waters after the convoy attempted to break through the naval blockade imposed by Israel on the Gaza Strip. The activists, who left Türkiye on board about 50 ships as part of the Global Resilience Fleet initiative, said they were providing humanitarian aid and protesting the blockade of Gaza imposed since 2007.According to French authorities, 36 French citizens were among the arrested activists. Israel later said the detainees would be deported.Barrow criticized the flotilla’s mission itself, saying that France did not support the activists’ approach.“We do not agree with this fleet’s approach, which does not produce any beneficial effect and places an additional burden on the diplomatic and consular services,” he wrote.Despite these criticisms, France confirmed that the treatment of detainees exceeded the limits.
Barrow said that he is coordinating with Italy to push for European Union sanctions to be imposed on Ben Gvir.Spain also urged the European Union to impose sanctions on the Israeli minister, while the United Kingdom summoned the most senior Israeli diplomat in London over what it described as an “inflammatory video.”Netanyahu distanced himself from the videos but stopped short of taking any action against his coalition ally. The Israeli prime minister said Ben Gvir’s behavior was “not consistent with Israeli values and norms,” although he kept him in his government, the Associated Press reported.Meanwhile, Netanyahu has defended Israel’s interception of the flotilla, previously describing the aid mission as a “malicious plot” aimed at supporting Hamas.Israel has imposed tight control on all entry points into Gaza for nearly two decades. The blockade has faced increasing international scrutiny during the ongoing war in Gaza, as the area suffers from severe shortages of food, medicine and other basic supplies. Aid agencies have repeatedly warned of deteriorating humanitarian conditions, especially during periods when Israel halted aid deliveries entirely.The latest flotilla operation followed a similar attempt last month that was intercepted by Israeli authorities in international waters off Greece, and most of the activists were later expelled to Europe.
