France may retaliate by expelling Israeli diplomats if Israel follows through on threats to shut down the French consulate general in Jerusalem, a veteran French journalist reported Tuesday.
Georges Malbrunot, a correspondent for the French daily Le Figaro, wrote that Paris is preparing possible countermeasures after Israeli officials warned they could close the mission in protest of France’s plan to recognize a Palestinian state at the upcoming UN General Assembly session.
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French President Emmanuel Macron and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu
(Photo: Yves HERMAN / AFP, Abir SULTAN / AFP)
According to Malbrunot, retaliation could also include reducing the number of Mossad operatives working in France, though he noted that Israeli embassy security in Paris would not be affected. The consulate, which has operated since 1843, handles services for Palestinians and some 25,000 French citizens living in west Jerusalem.
Closing the consulate would mark a significant escalation in Israel’s dispute with France. Malbrunot wrote that even considering limits on Mossad’s Paris station would be unprecedented, given the agency’s long-standing cooperation with France’s DGSE intelligence service. According to foreign reports, Mossad has supplied French authorities with intelligence that helped foil several Iranian plots on French soil, including a 2018 plan to attack an Iranian opposition rally near Paris.
French President Emmanuel Macron announced in late July that he intends to recognize a Palestinian state during the UN gathering this month, even if Israel and Hamas reach a ceasefire before then. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the move as “a prize for terror.”
France has since been joined by several other Western nations signaling they too will back Palestinian recognition at the UN.