A French court has issued summonses for questioning against two women living in Israel who also hold French citizenship, accusing them of involvement in obstructing humanitarian aid deliveries to the Gaza Strip during the war between Israel and Hamas, the French newspaper Le Monde reported Monday.
The summonses were issued against Nili Kupfer-Naouri and Rachel Tuito on suspicion of “complicity in genocide” and “public and direct incitement to genocide,” according to the report. The legal action stems from allegations that the two played roles in efforts to block or delay the transfer of humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Kupfer-Naouri, a lawyer, is the founder and chair of the advocacy group Israel Is Forever. She confirmed in a recorded interview that a summons had been issued against her. Tuito serves as a spokesperson for the protest group Tzav 9, which organized demonstrations aimed at blocking aid trucks at the Kerem Shalom and Nitzana crossings. According to Le Monde, Tzav 9 led the physical blockades, while Israel Is Forever publicly called for participation and helped recruit volunteers.
Both women reside in Israel. French media reported that the actions cited in the summonses allegedly took place between Jan. 1 and Nov. 26, 2024, as well as in May 2025. The proceedings were launched following complaints filed by pro-Palestinian organizations and are being handled as part of a judicial investigation opened in France earlier this year.
The summonses are not arrest warrants and do not automatically lead to pretrial detention. However, they allow judges to compel individuals to appear for questioning and are, in principle, valid across the European Union. Unlike arrest warrants, such summonses can be issued directly by investigating judges without approval from France’s National Anti-Terrorism Prosecutor’s Office, known as PNAT.
According to French legal sources cited by Le Monde, the case reflects a willingness by French judges to broaden interpretations of “complicity in genocide” to include civilian actions such as blocking humanitarian aid. The investigation bypasses PNAT, which typically handles cases involving war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide.
The investigation was opened in the spring of 2025 following complaints by human rights groups accusing the two women of acting through their respective organizations to prevent or delay the entry of aid trucks into Gaza during 2024 and 2025, calling for supplies to be withheld and engaging in what the complaints described as the “dehumanization” of Gaza’s civilian population.
Sources familiar with the case said the summonses were issued as early as July 2025, but became public only recently. The proceedings are being conducted in France under the country’s jurisdiction over serious international crimes, even when suspects reside abroad.
Tuito rejected the allegations, writing on the social media platform X that the French justice system was showing greater zeal in addressing complaints from what she described as a radical pro-Palestinian group than in handling cases filed against far-left lawmakers accused of supporting terrorism. She said that if a peaceful protest carrying Israeli flags against a terrorist organization accused of diverting and selling humanitarian aid constituted a crime, “then France is becoming Iran.”
Kupfer-Naouri described the legal action as “antisemitic persecution” and warned it could set a dangerous precedent for French-Israeli soldiers and civilians.
Pro-Palestinian groups, including Nidal, several Palestinian organizations and the French Jewish Union for Peace, welcomed the decision, calling it the first legal recognition that blocking humanitarian aid could constitute complicity in genocide.
Kupfer-Naouri previously drew attention in France in March 2023 when Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich attended a memorial event for her father, Jacques Kupfer, a former leader of the French Freedom Movement and a longtime Zionist activist. During that event, Smotrich said “there is no such thing as a Palestinian people,” prompting widespread criticism and media coverage in France.
The Tzav 9 group, for which Tuito serves as spokesperson, was sanctioned in 2024 by both the United States and the European Union.