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France has summoned US ambassador Charles Kushner after he said that French President Emmanuel Macron had failed to tackle antisemitic violence effectively, the French foreign ministry said on Sunday.
In a letter sent to the French president and published in the Wall Street Journal on Sunday, Kushner said he had “deep concern over the dramatic rise of antisemitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by your government to confront it”.
In a statement on Sunday, the French foreign ministry responded: “The allegations of the ambassador are unacceptable”, and contravene international law governing diplomatic relations relating to interventions in the domestic affairs of another country.
“France firmly denies these allegations. The rise in antisemitic acts in France since the 7 October, 2023 is a reality that we deplore and against which French authorities are totally mobilised, because these actions are intolerable,” the statement added.
It said Kushner had been summoned to the country’s foreign affairs ministry, the Quai d’Orsay, on Monday.
Kushner’s letter said the rise in antisemitism had “exploded” since Hamas’s October 7 attack on Israel in 2023, and also criticised Macron’s approach to Israel’s offensive on Gaza.
“Public statements haranguing Israel and gestures towards recognition of a Palestinian state embolden extremists, fuel violence and endanger Jewish life in France. In today’s world, anti-Zionism is antisemitism — plain and simple,” he added.
The statement is among the first public actions taken by Kushner — father of President Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner — since his appointment to the role in May.
It comes after Macron said France would recognise the state of Palestine in September, citing the need for the war in Gaza to end and for aid to be brought to the population.
Public and political opinion in France and elsewhere in Europe has increasingly hardened against Israel, as the country has continued its attack on Gaza and restricted the free flow of humanitarian aid.
On Friday, a UN-backed panel declared a famine in Gaza for the first time, which it said was “entirely man-made”.
Macron’s move towards recognition led to strong criticism from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Kushner’s letter underlines the diplomatic differences between France and the US over Israel’s ongoing offensive, and is a striking intervention in French domestic affairs.
Kushner added in his letter: “Mr President, I urge you to act decisively: enforce hate-crime laws without exception; ensure the safety of Jewish schools, synagogues and businesses, prosecute offenders to the fullest extent; and abandon steps that give legitimacy to Hamas and its allies”.
Data based on French interior ministry sources and published by Crif, an umbrella organisation of Jewish associations, shows a sharp rise in antisemitic incidents since October 7. They reached 1,676 in 2023 and 1,570 in 2024, far above the 436 recorded in 2022.
