The French Foreign Ministry summoned Israel’s ambassador on Tuesday to protest a recent incident in Jerusalem in which Israeli police entered property administered by the French consulate. Paris explained to the ambassador that such an incident must not be repeated, TASR reports, according to a Reuters report.
On November 7, the Israeli police entered the French-administered Pater noster Church in Jerusalem, built on the site where, according to tradition, Jesus taught his disciples to pray the Lord’s Prayer, and detained two gendarmes of the French consulate with diplomatic status. This happened just before the French Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Noël Barrot was supposed to visit the said temple, who canceled his visit in response to the incident.
The department will implement measures
According to its statement on Tuesday, the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs explained to the ambassador that the presence of Israeli armed forces or the detention of French representatives in such a place are “unacceptable”, especially between such strong allies as these two countries. “Measures will be put in place to ensure so that such an action is not repeated,” the department added.
The Israeli police described the incident as a misunderstanding, reports the AP agency. At the same time, she stated that she briefly detained the two caretakers of the mentioned church because they refused to provide their identification cards to the Israeli security guards, who, in accordance with the protocols of the Jewish state, were supposed to accompany Barrota during his visit to the church.
Police say they detained the men for about 20 minutes and released them when it was revealed they were employees of the French consulate in Jerusalem, which is in charge of managing several religious sites in the city.
Deteriorated relationships
Diplomatic relations between France and Israel have soured since French President Emmanuel Macron called for an end to the supply of assault weapons used in Gaza to Israel. The French government initially banned Israeli arms companies from participating in last week’s trade fair in Paris, but later reversed the decision. At the same time, he expresses growing concern with Israel’s progress in the wars in Gaza and Lebanon.
Relations between the two countries will be put to the test again this week, Reuters reports. Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli rallies are to be held in Paris on Wednesday, and a Nations League soccer match between France and Israel will take place in Paris on Thursday, the proceedings of which are accompanied by significant security concerns following last week’s violence following a Europa League match in Amsterdam.
