JERUSALEM
\nFrench President Emmanuel Macron proposed on Tuesday that an international coalition fighting Islamic State in Iraq and Syria widens its scope to include the fight against the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza.
\nMacron gave no details on how the U.S.-led coalition of dozens of countries, of which Israel is not a member, could be involved. His advisers said, however, that the coalition\u2019s participation would not necessarily imply boots on the ground, but could include intelligence-sharing.
\nSpeaking alongside Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, Macron stressed that France and Israel shared terrorism as their \u201ccommon enemy\u201d.
\n\u201cFrance is ready for the international coalition against Daesh in which we are taking part for operations in Iraq and Syria to also fight against Hamas,\u201d he told reporters, referring to Islamic State.
\nMacron, who warned against the risks of a regional conflict, also said the fight against Hamas \u201cmust be without mercy but not without rules\u201d.
\nIsraeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not directly comment on Macron\u2019s proposal but said the fight was a battle between the \u201caxis of evil\u201d and \u201cthe free world\u201d.
\n\u201cThis battle is not merely our own… it\u2019s everybody\u2019s battle,\u201d he said.
\nThe U.S-led coalition fighting Islamic State was formed in September 2014.
\nMacron\u2019s office said the idea was to draw inspiration from the coalition and that France was available to discuss with Israel and partners what could be relevant against Hamas.
\n\u201cThe international coalition against Daesh does not limit itself to operations on the ground, but is also involved in the training of Iraqi forces, the sharing of information between partners, and the fight against terrorism funding,\u201d it said.
\nCareful to strike a balance, Macron also met with Palestinian leader Mahmoud Abbas in the West Bank city of Ramallah, where he said the Hamas attack was not only traumatic for Israel, it was a disaster for the Palestinian people.
\n\u201cA Palestinian life is worth a French life, which is a worth an Israeli life,\u201d Macron said, repeating the need for a two-state solution he said was necessary so Palestinians don\u2019t follow the \u201cmirages of the most radical terrorist groups.\u201d
\nAbbas, who said France\u2019s voice was respected in the region, called for an immediate cessation of the \u201caggression\u201d on Gaza and for protection for Palestinians. However, some protesters took to Ramallah\u2019s streets to demonstrate against Macron\u2019s visit and burned pictures of him. \u2018Macron, stop your support for Israel,\u2019 read one of the banners.<\/p>\n
Thirty French citizens were killed by Hamas militants in their attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, in which more than 200 people were seized and 1,400 people killed. The Palestinian health ministry says Israeli air strikes on Gaza have killed over 5,000 people since then.<\/p>\n
The French president, who met families of French victims at Tel Aviv airport, said freeing nine French hostages was a priority for France.
\nHe was due to meet regional leaders in Jordan\u2019s capital Amman on Tuesday.
\nAdditional reporting by Tassilo Hummel, Michael Georgy and Oma Abdel-Razek; Writing by Michel Rose and Ingrid Melander in Paris; Editing by Kevin Liffey, Mike Harrison, Robert Birsel, Alison Williams and Rod Nickel.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
JERUSALEM French President Emmanuel Macron proposed on Tuesday that an international coalition fighting Islamic State in Iraq and Syria widens its scope to include the fight against the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza. Macron gave no details on how the U.S.-led coalition of dozens of countries, of which Israel is not a member, could […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":243594,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-363795","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n