VILLEPINTE
\nFrance: A dozen Israeli company stands were shut down Monday at a major international defense and security exhibition held outside Paris, sparking outrage from authorities in Israel.
\nTensions have persisted in French-Israeli relations, with France recognizing Palestinian statehood last year and two far-right Israeli ministers banned from entering the country in recent weeks.
\nThe stands at the Eurosatory arms and security trade show were \u201cclosed due to non-compliance with participation conditions set by the French authorities,\u201d the organizer, Coges Events, said in a statement to AFP.
\nIt said it was required to enforce decisions of the French authorities.
\n\u201cAs a result, 12 booths had to be closed,\u201d Charles Beaudouin, head of Coges Events, said in the statement.
\nFrance has banned the display of Israeli offensive weapons at the 2026 edition of the exhibition and restricted the display of Israeli companies \u201cto equipment and products exclusively related to air defense and ballistic missile defense capabilities,\u201d he said.
\nThe Israeli defense ministry argued the Israeli pavilions were boarded up \u201cdespite these companies having met the French government\u2019s outrageous demands.\u201d
\nThe ministry accused France of trying \u201cto conceal Israeli technological superiority from the world.\u201d
\nWhile the booths of three major Israeli defense contractors including Israel Aerospace Industries and Rafael remained open on Monday, none displayed weapon models in public view, unlike exhibitors from other countries, an AFP journalist saw.
\nIsrael\u2019s ambassador to France called the French authorities\u2019 treatment of Israeli companies unacceptable.
\n\u201cFrance is losing a large share of this international market,\u201d Joshua Zarka told AFP. \u201cAnd the way it is responding is by engaging in competition that is inadequate and frankly unfair.\u201d
\nAt his now-closed booth, Amit Manor, chief executive of Amit Industries, said he was \u201cquite surprised\u201d by the decision.
\nHe said his company produces electric batteries used in drones, communication systems, and robots.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
VILLEPINTE France: A dozen Israeli company stands were shut down Monday at a major international defense and security exhibition held outside Paris, sparking outrage from authorities in Israel. Tensions have persisted in French-Israeli relations, with France recognizing Palestinian statehood last year and two far-right Israeli ministers banned from entering the country in recent weeks. The […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":551482,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-551456","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n