The war in Gaza is complex, painful, and deeply tragic for everyone involved. As the fighting rages on, Palestinians are facing food insecurity and devastation amid a war that Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization, refuses to end. In Israel, the toll of post-traumatic stress, of ongoing disruptions to daily life caused by rockets fired at civilian population centers, and of families torn apart by having loved ones killed or wounded is immeasurable. To end the suffering a solution that frees the remaining Hamas-held hostages, removes Hamas from power, and begins the process of rebuilding Gaza is necessary. Instead, a new diplomatic initiative is bolstering Hamas, and making a ceasefire even less likely.
On July 24, French President Emmanuel Macron stated that his country intends to unilaterally recognize a Palestinian state during the United Nations General Assembly meeting in September. He frames this move as an act of moral courage. In truth, it is moral cowardice.
Palestinian political power is divided between Hamas, who killed 1,200 people in a single day when it launched this war, and Fatah, whose Palestinian Authority pays convicted terrorists a salary. France’s recognition of Palestinian statehood under these conditions is not diplomacy—it is delusion. It undermines efforts to free hostages, empowers Hamas, and rewards the same leadership that plunged Gaza into ruin and starvation. After all, if Palestinians look at October 7th – the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust – as their July 4th, why wouldn’t the Palestinian street be convinced that rejecting peace, murdering civilians and refusing to compromise are the path to achieving their national goals?
President Macron may believe he’s offering a bold, humanitarian gesture. But in reality, he’s appeasing radical Islamic forces at Israel’s expense. This might make political sense in an environment where Western coverage of Gaza is almost entirely shaped by Hamas influenced sources. As Free Press columnist Matti Friedman notes, all sources for Western media concerning Gaza are either Hamas-aligned or Hamas-intimidated. When the public is being fed a narrative curated by a terror organization, with little to no independent verification, it is perhaps unsurprising that a political leader would attempt to appease Hamas. Yet, history demonstrates that appeasement has never led to peace. Appeasement only emboldens extremism.
This is why Hamas was quick to praise Macron’s announcement, calling it a “a positive step in the right direction.” This sentiment should concern anyone who wants to see a peaceful end to the war in Gaza and the creation of any kind of Palestinian independence alongside Israel. After all, Hamas’ goal is not a Palestinian state in peace with Israel, but rather a Palestinian state instead of Israel. This is what Israeli author Einat Wilf calls “Palestinianism,” the idea that destroying Israel takes precedence over building a future for Palestinians. A Palestinian state is not Hamas’ goal—Israel’s eradication is.
Instead of recognizing a failed Palestinian leadership as President Macron is prepared to do, the world should amplify new voices, like those of the Hebron sheikhs who recently proposed an “emirate-style” peace with Israel. This would bypass the corruption of the Palestinian Authority and offer a more stable, locally rooted alternative. But the international community largely ignores this sort of outside-the-box thinking because it doesn’t fit the rigid, outdated Oslo framework to which so many global leaders remain blindly attached.
Peace will not come from recycled slogans or premature recognition. It will only come from confronting hard truths about the role of Hamas, the media manipulation that distorts public understanding of the conflict, and the urgent need to protect both Israeli and Palestinian lives from continued exploitation.
If the world truly wanted to help, it would demand the release of the hostages, assist in Hamas’s undeniable defeat, and facilitate the evacuation of civilians from war zones. It would recognize that this war was not Israel’s choice, but Israel’s burden.
Israel must win, not only for its own people but for the broader principle that terror cannot be rewarded. Macron’s announcement, however well-intentioned, betrays that principle. It trades real peace for temporary applause and signals that brutality can be legitimized through global recognition.
If the world had shown any moral courage, this war would have been over long ago.
Nolan Lebovitz is the senior rabbi of Valley Beth Shalom in Encino, California, and sits on the advisory board of the Zionist Rabbinic Coalition. He is the author of the recently published book “The Case for Dual Loyalty: Healing the Divided Soul of American Jews.”
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