France bars Ben‑Gvir entry

France barred Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir from entering the country on Saturday, adding a personal travel restriction to a widening European response over Israeli actions tied to Gaza and the occupied West Bank. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said the ban took effect immediately and linked it to Ben-Gvir’s conduct toward French and other European citizens on the Global Sumud flotilla, according to multiple reports. The move came two days after Britain, France, Germany, Canada and other partners issued a joint warning over Israeli settlement plans in the E1 corridor between Jerusalem and Ma’ale Adumim. It also landed as criticism of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu became more public inside Israel, with opposition leader Avigdor Liberman accusing him of humiliating the country. ### Why did France move against Ben-Gvir now? Jean-Noël Barrot said on May 23 that Ben-Gvir was banned from entering French territory because of what he described as the minister’s actions toward French and European citizens aboard the Global Sumud flotilla. Reports from Al-Monitor, Al Arabiya and Politico said Barrot also called for European Union sanctions on Ben-Gvir. Israel National News reported that France’s announcement made it the second European country after Poland to bar Ben-Gvir from entry. The same report said Barrot made the announcement on Saturday. ### What was the wider Western warning about Ma’ale Adumim? A joint statement published by the British government on May 22 said the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, the Netherlands, Spain, Belgium and the European Union opposed settlement expansion in the E1 area of the West Bank. (al-monitor.com) The statement warned that linking Jerusalem to Ma’ale Adumim would undermine a two-state solution and said businesses should not bid for construction tenders there. (israelnationalnews.com) Al Jazeera reported that the E1 plan would connect the Ma’ale Adumim settlement bloc with Jerusalem and further fragment the West Bank. Israel National News separately reported the warning as a joint message from Canada, Britain, France, Germany and others. ### Is this only about the flotilla, or also about the West Bank? France’s stated reason for the entry ban was Ben-Gvir’s treatment of European citizens tied to the flotilla, according to Barrot’s public remarks as reported by Al-Monitor and Al Arabiya. (gov.uk) But the timing placed the ban alongside a broader European push over Israeli policy in the West Bank, especially the E1 corridor near Ma’ale Adumim. (aljazeera.com) Politico reported that Barrot paired the French ban with a call for EU sanctions on the far-right Israeli minister. That put the French step beyond a diplomatic protest and into a direct restriction on one cabinet minister’s travel. ### What was happening inside Israeli politics at the same time? Avigdor Liberman, the head of the opposition Yisrael Beytenu party and a former defense minister, accused Netanyahu on May 24 of turning Israel into a “banana republic.” Middle East Eye and the Times of Israel both reported that Liberman tied his criticism to debate over an emerging agreement with Iran and said Israel was being humiliated. (al-monitor.com) (politico.eu) The Liberman remarks were separate from France’s decision, and no source in the reporting linked them directly. But they showed that Netanyahu was also facing public criticism from a senior right-wing rival as European governments increased pressure over separate issues. ### What comes next? The European Union is the next named venue to watch because Barrot has urged bloc-level sanctions against Ben-Gvir, according to Politico and Al-Monitor. (middleeasteye.net) The West Bank file is also moving on a published track: the May 22 joint statement is now the reference point for any follow-up by Britain, France, Germany, Canada and the other signatories on E1 tenders and Ma’ale Adumim. (politico.eu)