https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/434802
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/434849
Macron ‘shocked’ by riots sweeping through France
Macron vows to prosecute rioters as more than 2,000 are arrested and over 600 security personnel injured in unrest across France.
French President Emmanuel Macron addressed the nation in a special speech following a wave of violence and looting that swept the country. He expressed shock at the destruction, vowed to prosecute those responsible and ordered an investigation into whether security forces had failed to prepare adequately. He also announced measures to restrict gatherings and called for representatives of the public to convene in an effort to find a solution to the crisis.
French President Emmanuel Macron delivered a special address to the nation on Sunday evening following the severe riots that erupted across the country, expressing shock at the violence, arson and looting accompanying mass protests over the cost of living.
“How can French people do this to France?" Macron asked, referring to images of destruction from Paris and other cities.
“When we look at these images, we all ask ourselves what was going through their minds. Nothing justifies this, nothing explains it, and nothing can serve as an excuse for it. Tonight, we all feel anger and shame," he said.
Macron made clear that he intended to hold those responsible for the violence accountable, warning that anyone who had attempted to attack the institutions of the republic would have to answer for their actions. He said the country could not accept a situation in which social protest turned into an assault on state institutions, security forces and public property.
The president also addressed serious questions raised by the scale of the unrest and the authorities’ ability to contain it. He announced that he had ordered an investigation to determine whether there had been failures in intelligence gathering or police preparations ahead of the demonstrations.
The move comes after security forces struggled to bring the numerous sites of violence under control. In Paris, shops were looted, vehicles were set on fire and extensive property damage was reported. In other cities, public buildings were attacked, including in Limoges, where a substantial part of the historic city hall was burned.
Macron also announced that local mayors and representatives of the central government in the regions would be granted the authority to ban certain gatherings where necessary, with the aim of preventing further outbreaks of violence.
The speech followed a day in which France experienced an exceptional wave of violence. According to figures reported by French media on Sunday evening, more than 2,000 people had been arrested during the unrest, while more than 600 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters had been injured.
The protests began as demonstrations against the cost of living and cuts to public services. According to official figures, approximately 550,000 people took part, while organizers put the turnout at around 800,000. Much of the protest activity remained peaceful, but groups of rioters took advantage of the demonstrations to attack police officers, loot shops and set buildings on fire.
The unrest has also triggered a fierce political confrontation. The French government blamed far-left groups, while opposition figures criticized police preparations and the government’s handling of the situation.
With approximately six months remaining in his term, Macron now faces a crisis combining widespread social protest, street violence and criticism of the government’s ability to maintain public order.
https://www.israelnationalnews.com/news/434802
Macron pointed to “unrestrained violence” by “insurrectionist elements from radical far-left groups, joined by numerous criminals.”
Macron lectures Israel while France burns
A president so confident about criticizing another democracy should bring the same urgency to protecting his own citizens.
Emmanuel Macron has spent years telling Israel what responsible leadership requires. At the United Nations and before the world’s cameras, France’s president has delivered prescriptions, condemnations, and diplomatic initiatives with remarkable confidence.
After the latest violence across France, a question demands an answer: Where is that confidence when his own country needs governing?
On October 17, demonstrations ostensibly over living costs and deteriorating public services brought hundreds of thousands into French streets. They did not protest peacefully. Violent groups exploited the mobilization to attack buildings, loot businesses, and confront police.
In Limoges, the historic city hall burned. In Marseille, intruders broke into city hall and defaced it. In Lyon, the tourist office was set ablaze. A synagogue was desecrated. This was a crisis stretching far beyond the capital.
By Sunday, the Interior Ministry reported nearly 2,400 arrests and almost 1,000 injured police officers and gendarmes. Further clashes and looting followed in Paris. Behind those figures were frightened residents, injured people, exhausted officers, and business owners confronting wrecked livelihoods.
A country cannot become accustomed to this.
The world has heard Macron’s lectures. France may not survive to see the end of his speech.
A broken shop window looks almost abstract in a photograph. For the person who owns the shop, it means lost income, insurance claims, canceled work, and uncertainty about whether reopening is even possible.
A burned municipal building means disrupted services and damage to the shared inheritance of a community. A street surrendered to violence tells residents that the protections they pay for and depend upon have become unreliable.
These are failures with consequences long after the television crews leave.
Macron condemned the destruction and distinguished peaceful demonstrators from those responsible for violence. That distinction is essential. People demanding better schools, adequate teachers, and affordable lives deserve to be heard. Their grievances do not become illegitimate because criminals exploit a demonstration.
But condemnation after the damage cannot be the full measure of presidential leadership. Citizens are entitled to ask what was anticipated, what was protected, and why obvious targets were left vulnerable.
They deserve answers before the next eruption.
My frustration is sharpened by Macron’s relentless confidence in judging Israel. And let’s face it. Some of the most violent protesters throughout France are Jihadis waiving Palestinian flags. It seems they hate France as much, or even more, than they hate Israel. Wow! That’s incalculable hate!
And yet, here is a leader who repeatedly presents himself as capable of prescribing security arrangements for a democracy across the Mediterranean facing threats considerably more severe than his own.
His domestic record should inspire greater humility.
In October 2024, Macron called for an end to arms exports used in Gaza and Lebanon. He presented the proposal as a means of stopping the conflicts. Israelis had every reason to ask how restricting military supplies would affect their ability to confront armed enemies.
Then, in May 2025, France joined Britain and Canada in a statement opposing expanded Israeli operations in Gaza and threatening further action if Israel did not change course.
In September 2025, Macron announced France’s recognition of a Palestinian Arab state at the United Nations. He argued that recognition would advance peace and undermine Hamas.
That judgment as dangerous and downright stupid. Diplomatic recognition cannot itself establish accountable institutions, disarm terrorists, or guarantee that territory will never again become a launching ground for attacks.
A ceremony can announce a state. It cannot supply the conditions that make one peaceful.
A Palestinian Arab state would of course be an existential threat to Israel. But truth be told it would be an even greater danger to itself as a failed state ruled by lawless terrorists who murder Palestinian Arab women and shoot protesters indiscriminately like in Iran.
Israeli security deserves more than reassuring language appended to policies Israelis know will endanger them.
Macron is not entitled to assume that his distance from the battlefield confers superior wisdom about its dangers.
His approach reflects a severe anti-Israel bias: excessive faith in pressuring the Jewish state and insufficient respect for the security judgments of people who must live with the consequences.
A ceremony can announce a state. It cannot supply the conditions that make one peaceful.
No child receives a better education because a school is vandalized. No struggling family benefits when its neighborhood supermarket is looted.
Destruction impoverishes the very communities in whose name it is so often rationalized.
While Israel thrives, Paris is burning. Perhaps Macron should save France and hold off on condemning the Jews.
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