French politicians question 'measured response' to Jerusalem

By Shweta Desai

PARIS (AA) - French lawmakers exhorted the government on Tuesday to add its voice to condemn the violence against Palestinians, saying there can be "no peace without justice."

Communist Party members Elsa Faucillon and Clementine Autain used the Question and Answer hour in the National Assembly to raise the issue of ongoing violence and question the government's "measured response."

"Palestinians' lives matter," said Faucillon. "France seeks a position of so-called 'balance' without condemning the policy of colonization and apartheid. There will be no peace without justice," she said in a tweet from a portion of her address.

France's silence contributes to the impunity in which Israeli atrocities take place, she said as she urged the government to "react and act."

Autain, too, urged the government to condemn the abuses of Israel's army and not merely express "concern" about the violent situation.

"We do not speak in the same tone to the boot that crushes and the face that is crushed," she said, demanding France "recognize the Palestinian state and assist in a political resolution."

Secretary of State to the Minister of Foreign Affairs Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne said France never backslid and remained at the initiative to help restore the conditions for peace.

"We called on the Israeli authorities for a proportionate use of force," he said. "These tensions raise fears of a major escalation and therefore, we call on all actors to exercise restraint."

Outside the national assembly, Raphael Glucksmann, Member of the European Parliament, also tweeted: "to denounce the expulsions of Sheikh Jarrah and to be outraged at the deaths in Gaza is not to be anti-Israel. It is to defend the human rights and the future of both peoples."