French authorities have launched a criminal investigation into French-Israeli citizens suspected of “complicity in genocide” and “incitement to genocide,” following a complaint filed by the French Jewish Union for Peace (UJFP) and a Palestinian-French organization in November 2023.
The complaint accuses the individuals of allegedly working to block humanitarian aid from reaching the Gaza Strip.
Interview with UJFP spokesperson Béatrice Orès
(Video: Yaron Brener )
Béatrice Orès, a Jewish spokesperson for UJFP, appeared on Ynet Sunday morning to defend the legal move against Israeli activists. “It’s not because they’re Israeli, it’s because they’re French and are contributing to people starving by blocking humanitarian aid,” she said.
“I don’t know if you’re talking about the genocide taking place in Gaza but as a Jewish organization, we can’t support this. We can’t support Israelis and French nationals doing this.”
When asked about reports that much of the aid entering Gaza is seized by Hamas, Orès denied it. Citing Jean-Pierre Filoux, a French member of Doctors Without Borders who was in Gaza in January 2024, she said: “It’s not Hamas taking the aid. According to him, the looters are criminals who were released from prison and are protected by the Israeli army. That’s the truth.”
Orès rejected the claim that she was repeating Hamas propaganda. “We’re a political organization. We analyze the situation and I know what genocide is—my father was in the camps, so I know what must be done to fight this kind of thing,” she said.
“This really is genocide and the UN said so. You can’t keep denying reality. It’s dangerous. [Benjamin] Netanyahu says the UN is antisemitic but they’re just doing their job,” she added.
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Talking about the reaction from France’s Jewish community, Orès said: “It varies. Some people no longer support what the Israeli government is doing. Not the whole community, of course—many French Jews still support Israel’s actions—but not all of us.”
Orès declined to unequivocally condemn the October 7 Hamas massacre. “Yes, there was a human massacre on October 7 but you have to remember why it happened,” she said. “If you ignore the context and don’t think about the broader situation, it’s misleading. This didn’t fall from the sky. You can’t analyze violence without context—there’ll never be peace that way,” she said.
The French probe is being led by a counterterrorism unit within the national prosecution office. The investigation focuses on the complaint’s claim that pro-Israel groups that organized, participated in and incited actions aimed at halting humanitarian aid to Gaza, including physically blocking aid trucks at border crossings under IDF control.
According to French authorities, the key incidents under investigation occurred in January 2024, primarily at the Nitzana border crossing (between Egypt and Israel) and the Kerem Shalom border crossing (between Israel and Gaza).