Netanyahu slams Macron for praising Abbas despite pay-for-slay, incitement, and dictatorship, calling France’s recognition push a dangerous illusion.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu delivered a forceful and unapologetic rebuke of French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday, accusing him of whitewashing Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas as a “prince of peace” while ignoring the deadly realities of PA policy and incitement.
In a sharply worded interview with Australian journalist Erin Molan, Netanyahu said Macron’s warm embrace of Abbas during their Paris meeting was nothing short of “the opposite of reality.”
“You cannot build peace on falsehoods,” Netanyahu warned. “Sooner or later, these falsehoods crash on the rocks of Middle East reality.”
The Prime Minister highlighted the most damning fact of all:
Abbas continues to fund terrorists who murder Israelis.
The PA’s infamous pay-for-slay program—now rebranded as “welfare support”—still rewards terrorists and their families, with Abbas publicly vowing not to cut “a single penny.”
Netanyahu stressed that Abbas is no democrat either.
The PA leader is 21 years into a four-year term, presiding over an unelected regime that glorifies terrorists, broadcasts antisemitic propaganda, and indoctrinates schoolchildren with textbooks promoting the destruction of Israel.
“My advice to President Macron is simple,” Netanyahu said.
“Learn the facts. Stick to the facts. Don’t escape the facts.”
“When you look at the truth, the force for peace and stability is Israel—not the Palestinian Authority.”
Macron’s Push for a Palestinian State
During his meeting with Abbas, Macron announced that France will help the PA draft a constitution for a future Palestinian state. He described Abbas as a “partner for peace” and claimed the PA “consistently condemns terrorism,” even though Abbas has never condemned the October 7 Hamas massacre in Arabic—the language in which he addresses his own people.
France recently led an initiative—joined by Britain, Canada, and Australia—to formally recognize a Palestinian state, despite Hamas’s October 7 atrocities and ongoing Iranian-backed terrorism.
Israel and the United States sharply denounced the move, calling it a dangerous, unilateral reward for terror that bypasses direct negotiations and strengthens extremist factions.
The Palestinian Strategy: Avoid Talks, Seek Recognition
The PA has long pushed foreign governments to recognize “Palestine” to sidestep peace talks with Israel—a strategy that produces symbolic headlines but no diplomatic substance.
Recent recognitions, while celebrated by Ramallah, have had zero operational effect on the ground.
Netanyahu’s message to Paris was crystal clear:
Pretending Abbas is a peacemaker will not bring peace. Facing the truth might.
