French PM announces legislation to criminalize anti-Zionist expression

France intends to introduce legislation banning expression against Zionism, effectively criminalizing anti-Zionism, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said on Thursday evening. 

The French leader made his remarks at the annual conference of the Representative Council of Jewish Institutions of France (CRIF), as part of the government’s broader efforts to curb rising antisemitism across the country.

Lecornu announced that a bill criminalizing anti-Zionist expression will be put on the parliamentary agenda in April.

He maintained that, after antisemitism is considered a crime, “We must today take a further step. To call for the destruction of the State of Israel is to call for the vital endangerment of a people. And in France, the call to murder is forbidden. Antisemitism is punished. The call for the annihilation of a state can therefore no longer be tolerated.” 

Lecornu essentially pledged the support of the entire coalition for the private bill proposed by Jewish Member of Parliament Caroline Yadon, who represents the French diaspora. He condemned the “blurring” between legitimate criticism of the Israeli government and rejection of the Jewish state's existence.

While the French government has had difficulty passing legislation in Parliament since the snap elections called by President Emmanuel Macron, which significantly curtailed his power, the proposal is expected to gain support from the French right, potentially securing a majority. 

Rima Hassan, a French politician of Palestinian origin and known for her participation in Gaza flotillas, opposed the measure, responding to Prime Minister Lecornu: ‘We’re all going to prison.’

The French minister for Gender Equality and the Fight Against Discrimination, Aurore Bergé, was interviewed by KAN News earlier this month and spoke about the fight against antisemitism in France.

“Nowadays, anti-Zionism is antisemitism,” said Bergé, adding that there is “an obsession about Israel. The only topic they are talking [about], day after day, is Israel. The only state in the world they call to destroy.”