France’s Declaration to Recognize a Palestinian State is not Diplomacy, it's Appeasement

July 25, 2025

The Simon Wiesenthal Center Issued the Following Statement in Response To France’s Declaration to Recognize a Palestinian State:

“At a time when the French government has not done enough to secure the safety of its own Jewish citizens, it should give careful thought before taking actions that will embolden a terrorist organization such as Hamas which still refuses to release innocent Israeli hostages, disarm or end violence against innocent Palestinian people who remain trapped under Hamas’ militant control.

Recognizing Palestinian statehood, before any authorized representative of the Palestinian people has recognized the Jewish State of Israel, rewards terror and diminishes the possibility for a two-state solution by rewarding the most extreme aspects of the Palestinian movement that seek the creation a Palestinian state on top of, and not alongside of, a Jewish state.

Recognizing a Palestinian state now, under these conditions, undermines the pursuit of peace, ignores the horrors of October 7th, and disrespects the memory of the 1,200 murdered by Hamas. The Simon Wiesenthal Center is increasingly concerned that international pressure continues to be disproportionately and obsessively aimed at Israel, while Hamas openly defies ceasefire terms, celebrates massacres, and abuses its own people in Gaza.

Ironically, France’s decision to reward Hamas’ explicit, never denied campaign to commit genocide against the people of Israel, comes at the exact moment the U.S. has determined that Hamas is not serious about agreeing to a cease-fire and releasing Israeli hostages as part of such an agreement. By rewarding terror, France’s decision makes peace less likely, not more likely, This reckless move sends the wrong message at the worst possible time. More Palestinians and more Israelis will suffer and die as a result of this decision.

France’s decision is not diplomacy, it is appeasement. And it risks erasing the line between peace-seeking Palestinians and genocidal extremists who chant for the eradication of the Jewish State.”

For further information, please email Erik Simon at esimon@wiesenthal.com, Deborah Camiel at dcamiel@wiesenthal.com, join the Center on Facebook, or follow @simonwiesenthal for news updates sent directly to your X feed.

The Simon Wiesenthal Center is an international Jewish human rights organization. It holds consultative status at the United Nations, UNESCO, the OSCE, the Council of Europe, the OAS, and the Latin American Parliament (PARLATINO).