It’s hard to imagine a more foolish, untimely, and ignorant decision by Emmanuel Macron to champion the creation of a Palestinian state. His announcement is not only impractical, but it is a distraction from the real issues in Gaza. And it is a betrayal of the state of Israel.

Why is Macron taking this stand now? For one, he seems to operate from within an idealistic and naïve bubble, that allows him to ignore the facts on the ground; the timing was also intentional:

Mr Macron has been leaning towards recognising a Palestinian state for months as part of a bid to keep the idea of a two-state solution alive, despite pressure from other countries not to do so.

His announcement came days before France and Saudi Arabia co-host a conference at the UN, where 40 foreign ministers will discuss a two-state solution.

At a time when Macron may think he’s running out of opportunities to elevate himself on the world stage (since he has only two years left of his term), he’s blundering ahead.

Why is this step a mistake? First, the message he’s sending to the Arab Palestinians is that the Hamas attack of October 7, 2023 can be ignored:

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu condemned the decision by France, one of Israel’s closest allies and a G7 member, saying such a move ‘rewards terror and risks creating another Iranian proxy.’

Israeli Defence Minister Israel Katz described it as ‘a disgrace and a surrender to terrorism.’

He added that Israel would not allow the establishment of a ‘Palestinian entity that would harm our security, endanger our existence.’

To establish a Palestinian state next door to Israel would only incentivize the Gazans to mount future attacks. Although civilian Palestinians have been leading protests against Hamas in recent months, it’s impossible to determine whether their actions are to stop the war and the humanitarian aid issue, or if they’ve come to change their perspective on Israel and support their right to exist.

I tend to believe the former, not the latter.

For some reason, Macron seems to think that declaring a Palestinian state will somehow remedy the real issues on the ground, such as the need for more humanitarian aid and the release of the hostages still held by Hamas:

‘This solution is the only path that can address the legitimate aspirations of both the Israelis and the Palestinians. It must now be brought about as quickly as possible,’ Macron said in a letter to Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas which confirmed his decision to recognize Palestine as a state.

‘The prospect of a negotiated solution to the conflict in the Middle East seems increasingly distant. I cannot resign myself to that,’ he said.

This declaration by Macron is misguided and deluded. First, the only way that the Palestinians would want to have their own state is if Israel is destroyed. Second, giving them a state “quickly” is not only unrealistic, but it is nearly impossible. And finally, third, why should we care how Macron feels about the future of the Palestinians?

Prime Minister Netanyahu is not the only one who has spoken out against Macron’s proposal. Secretary of State Marco Rubio criticized the move:

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States ‘strongly rejects (Mr Macron’s) plan to recognise a Palestinian state at the UN General Assembly.’

‘This reckless decision only serves Hamas propaganda and sets back peace,’ Mr Rubio posted on X. ‘It is a slap in the face to the victims of October 7th’ - a reference to Hamas’ 2023 cross-border attack on Israel that set off the Gaza war.

Ultimately, Hamas will make a two-state solution impossible. Over the last two years, they have manipulated and lied to representatives of Israel and the U.S. regarding the terms of the negotiations and ways to release the hostages. It has become increasingly clear that Hamas leaders intend to delay resolution on the war indefinitely. In the most recent negotiations, Steve Witkoff reported on the situation:

Witkoff accused Hamas of not ‘acting in good faith,’ and said the United States was bringing home its team.

Hamas’s response ‘clearly shows a lack of desire to reach a ceasefire in Gaza,’ Witkoff said on social media.

Washington would now ‘consider alternative options to bring the hostages home and try to create a more stable environment for the people of Gaza,’ he added.

In these last negotiations, at the last minute, Hamas added in additional demands:

CNN reported that according to the Hamas proposal, Israel would exchange 200 Palestinian prisoners serving life sentences in addition to 2,000 Gazan prisoners in exchange for 10 living hostages.

In exchange for the bodies of Israeli hostages, the terror group would receive ‘10 corpses of Palestinians plus 50 prisoners from Gaza who were captured after October 7, and women and children under the age of 18, to be named by Hamas.’

These are the people, backed by most of the civilian population, for whom Macron is calling for a state to be established.

This is why you can’t negotiate with terrorists. And why the two-state solution is impossible.

Image: Faces Of The World, CC BY 2.0, via Flickr, unaltered.