5 hours agoMayors of several municipalities in France will set up Palestinian flag
Periskopi(9 months ago)
(9 months ago)The mayors of several cities in France aim to place the Palestinian flag in their municipal buildings, ignoring the government's order as France is preparing to formally recognise the Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly. It is not clear how many cities we will join on Monday, after [...]
It is not clear how many cities to join this initiative Monday, following Socialist leader Olivier Faure's call to raise the Palestinian flag, despite warnings from the Interior Ministry against the move.
France is the country with the largest Jewish and Muslim population in Europe.
But Faures's call has taken off, as Palestinian flags have become increasingly present in France during almost two years of war in Gaza.
Palestinian banderola was seen this week during demonstrations on a big day of protests across the country, where several French President Emmanuel Macron and his Government were criticised.
The Gaza War and the wider Israeli-Palestinian conflict are expected to top the agenda of world leaders at the UN General Assembly's annual meeting, which begins on Monday.
Palestinians have said they hope that at least 10 other countries will recognise Palestinians, adding more than 145 countries they have already recognised.
Mathieu Hanotin, mayor of Saint-Denis, a suburb of Paris where the national football stadium is located, said he would place the Palestinian flag in the city municipality as a gesture of solidarity with the Palestinian people.
In western France, the town of Nantes also plans to raise the Palestinian flag in the municipal building, Mayor Johanna Rolland, socialist, announced.
For municipalities that want to unite, through a symbolic gesture, with recognition by France of the Palestinian state, I believe it makes sense. I'll do it without hesitation”, she said.
In a letter sent to state representatives in the regions, France's Interior Ministry urged them to reject the deployment of Palestinian flags to municipalities and other public buildings, citing the risk of introducing an international conflict on national soil.
The independence of neutrality in the public service prohibits such display”, the Interior Ministry said, adding that any decision by mayors to wave the Palestinian flag must refer to administrative courts.
The front page of a municipality is not a advertising sign. Only our tricolor flag, our colors, has the right to be represented in what remains, for us, a common house”. Interior Minister Bruno Retaileau said on Saturday.
Ian Brossat, spokesman for the French Communist Party, accused Retaiilleun of rejecting France's official stance. /Periscope/
