French President Emmanuel Macron said today from Hamburg, where he is on an official visit, that Israel has the right to defend itself, that his country supports its defense operations and condemns terrorist acts, but also that he wishes to work for achieving lasting peace in the region.

The French president underlined that the detention of hostages by Hamas is an abhorrent and unacceptable blackmail while, when asked by a journalist about the French hostages, he noted that France is in close cooperation with the Israeli authorities.

Our aim is to leave no room for terrorist acts, the French president said, pointing out at the same time that we should not confuse the fight against terrorism with respect for basic humanitarian law and the protection of the civilian population.

Emmanuel Macron also indicated that France opposes a total cutoff of European aid to the Palestinians, but stressed that all necessary measures should be taken to ensure that European funds do not finance Hamas.

The French president finally condemned all countries that showed satisfaction with the horrific attacks by Hamas on Israel, such as Iran, noting however that there is currently no evidence to confirm Tehran’s direct involvement in these attacks.