Newsletters
French lawmaker Farida Amrani on Friday praised Türkiye for assisting in the return of French nationals expelled from Israel after Paris allegedly refused to cover their repatriation costs.
Amrani said on X that nine French nationals “illegally detained” in Israel were expelled to Istanbul, where Turkish authorities and Turkish Airlines helped arrange onward travel for three of them to Paris.
She accused Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot of abandoning the citizens, claiming the ministry had issued “a clear directive” not to fund their return.
“France has decided to abandon them,” Amrani wrote, adding that Turkish authorities intervened after three of the French nationals were left stranded at Istanbul Airport.
Amrani expressed gratitude to Turkish lawmakers Bahadir Yenisehirlioglu and Hasan Turan of the Justice and Development (AK Party), as well as to Turkish consular staff in Tel Aviv and Istanbul, for their efforts.
“Let us hope that France will protect the next citizens of the flotilla ‘dumped’ somewhere in the world,” she said.
Israeli naval forces attacked and seized more than 40 boats last week that were part of the Gaza-bound Global Sumud humanitarian flotilla, detaining over 450 activists from more than 50 countries.
Most have since been deported, with many alleging mistreatment and abuse during detention.
Meanwhile, Indonesia lauded the role of Türkiye, the United States, Egypt, and Qatar in brokering the Gaza ceasefire, pledging to “participate actively” in the reconstruction process.
“Indonesia expresses its appreciation for the mediation efforts by the United States, Egypt, Qatar, and Türkiye, and underscores the importance of implementing all provisions of the ceasefire agreement in good faith,” the Indonesian Foreign Ministry said in a statement Friday.
Jakarta voiced hope that humanitarian access to Gaza would be “immediately and widely opened” and welcomed the start of phase one of the ceasefire.
“Indonesia calls on the international community to seize this momentum to resume the peace process in Palestine based on the Two-State Solution and to realize the establishment of an independent and sovereign State of Palestine, in accordance with relevant U.N. resolutions and international law,” the statement added.
1 min read
The Gaza ceasefire agreement was reached early Thursday in Egypt’s Red Sea city of Sharm el-Sheikh, mediated by guarantor states Qatar, Egypt, the U.S., and Türkiye.
The 20-point plan, first announced on Sept. 29 by U.S. President Donald Trump, includes the release of all Israeli captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, a permanent ceasefire, the disarmament of Hamas, and the reconstruction of Gaza.
Since October 2023, Israeli attacks have killed nearly 67,200 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and left much of the enclave uninhabitable, according to local and U.N. sources.
Israel has approved phase one of the ceasefire, and Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya said the group received guarantees that the deal means the war in Gaza “has ended completely.”
2 min read
