France has summoned US ambassador to Paris Charles Kushner after he accused President Emmanuel Macron’s government of failing to adequately confront a surge in antisemitism.
The dispute began when Kushner published an open letter in The Wall Street Journal addressed to Macron. The ambassador, the father of President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, alleged that antisemitism had ‘long scarred French life’ and had worsened dramatically since the 7 October Hamas attack on Israel. He painted a grim picture: Jews assaulted in the streets, synagogues and schools defaced, businesses vandalized—even preschools reporting incidents of antisemitic harassment.
‘I write out of deep concern over the dramatic rise of antisemitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by your government to confront it…In France, not a day passes without Jews assaulted in the street, synagogues or schools defaced, or Jewish-owned businesses vandalized,’ the letter stated.
Pro-Palestinian Statements Fuel Anti-Semitism
Kushner further urged Macron to ‘tone down his criticism of Israel’, warning that France’s position in the Gaza conflict was emboldening extremists. Echoing recent remarks by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the ambassador suggested that Macron’s pledge to formally recognize a Palestinian state in September was contributing to a hostile environment for Jews in France. Netanyahu, in a letter last week, had accused the French president of fuelling antisemitism by pursuing Palestinian statehood recognition.
‘Kushner…urged Macron to “tone down his criticism of Israel”, warning that France’s position in the Gaza conflict was emboldening extremists’
In his announcement on the recognition of Palestine, Macron argued:
‘We must build the State of Palestine, ensure its viability, and ensure that by accepting its demilitarisation and fully recognising Israel, it contributes to the security of all in the Middle East. There is no alternative.’
France—and other countries planning to recognize the Palestinian state, such as the UK—have been sharply criticized by Israel and the United States. According to the critics, recognizing the Palestinian state would reward Hamas, which Israel is fighting in Gaza after the terror group’s horrendous attack on 7 October, 2023.
France Pushes Back
The response from Paris to Kushner’s letter was swift and sharp. The French foreign ministry rejected the allegations as ‘unacceptable’ and reminded Kushner that under the 1961 Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations, ambassadors are forbidden from interfering in domestic politics. The ministry summoned Kushner for a meeting on Monday, a symbolic yet serious rebuke in diplomatic protocol.
Officials insisted that France had ‘fully mobilized’ against antisemitism, deploying security forces to protect synagogues and Jewish community centres since the Gaza war began. Macron himself has previously declared antisemitism to be ‘a betrayal of French values’. Still, French leaders bristled at the implication that their efforts were inadequate—or worse, complicit.
The timing of Kushner’s letter is no coincidence as he published his critique around the 81st anniversary of the Liberation of Paris from Nazi occupation—a moment of solemn remembrance for France’s Jewish community, many of whom perished during the Holocaust. By invoking this memory, Kushner highlighted fears among French Jews that history could repeat itself.
Antisemitism in France Linked to the Gaza War
The spiralling war in Gaza has fuelled a rise in antisemitism across Europe, including France, which is home to the largest Jewish community in Western Europe—about 500,000 people, or 1 per cent of the population.
Polls suggest a troubling erosion of Holocaust awareness in France, with nearly half of young people reportedly unfamiliar with it, deepening concerns about antisemitism’s resurgence. Meanwhile, authorities report a spike in antisemitic incidents linked to the War in Gaza, from graffiti and online abuse to physical attacks.
‘35 per cent of 18–24-year-olds say that it is justified to attack Jews because they support Israel’
A poll made in May 2024 by the American Jewish Committee shows that 92 per cent of French Jews and 76 per cent of the general population believe that antisemitism is widespread. 35 per cent of 18–24-year-olds say that it is justified to attack Jews because they support Israel.
A recent IFOP survey paints a grim picture of antisemitism in schools across France. The poll made in February 2025 among 2,000 school students shows that 51 per cent of students have heard negative comments about Jews from fellow students, and 25 per cent have heard similar remarks from family members.
A significant 21 per cent of Jewish students hide their religion or origin at school to avoid being targeted, while 6 per cent have witnessed Jewish students leaving or avoiding a school for safety reasons. The Ministry of Education recorded 477 antisemitic incidents in the first trimester of the 2024/2025 school year alone.
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