From Dr Shimon Samuels, Former Director for International Relations of the Simon Wiesenthal Centre
Paris, 1 October 2024
At the end of World War 1, the Ottoman Empire was partitioned. In 1920, today’s Lebanon and Syria were taken by France, officially to become part of the French Empire. Though administered by Damascus, Lebanon became mainly for Christians, with smaller numbers of Sunni and Shi’a Muslims, and other local ethnic-religious groups, including Jews, that rose to 10 thousand after the Iraqi Farhud (massacre of Jews) of 1941. Lebanon, and particularly Beirut, became known as “the Paris of the Middle East”.
Until its independence in 1946, despite Shi’a pogroms, Lebanese Jews still felt at home. Most fled to Israel during the Civil War of 1975-1990, prompted by Hafez al-Assad, the Syrian mass-murderer of his own people.
Soon after her birth, one of Israel’s greatest allies was France, under President Charles De Gaulle. Israel acquired warplanes and technological know-how... until France was eventually replaced by the United States.
Yet French and Israeli security services often came together through the Lebanese Civil War, both especially concerned by the growing Hezbollah terrorist syndicate, trained and backed by Tehran. We cannot forget the 1983 murder of 58 French soldiers in Beirut, the 1985-1986 Hezbollah terror attacks in France (following the already deadly PLO/Abu-Nidal killing spree). Nor can we forget the Iran-sponsored massacres (with Hezbollah involvement) perpetrated in Buenos Aires, in 1992 against the Israeli Embassy, leaving 29 dead and 242 wounded, and in 1994, against the AMIA Jewish Centre, leaving 85 dead and over 300 wounded...
Mr President, I recall your speech at the 2019 CRIF dinner: “France will fight against those who deny the existence of Israel”... and “anti-Zionism is one of the modern forms of antisemitism”. You also affirmed your commitment against international terrorism.
On 7 October 2023, you stated, “France strongly condemns the terrorist attacks by Hamas in Israel and expresses its solidarity with the victims.”
This year, on April 14, you promptly condemned the Iranian missile attack on Israel.
This week-end, the Christian Post stated: “In a series of coordinated attacks, Hezbollah launched rockets at Nazareth, the hometown of Jesus, which today is 70% Muslim and only 30% Christian.” Other media outlets reported that “Lebanese Forces linked to Christian political parties were ecstatic at Nasrallah’s death”... and that “Syrian refugees in the Lebanese North see Hezbollah as responsible for the dictatorships in both Syria and Iran.”
Mr President, the situation is not as depicted by many at the UN, who condemn Israel like a broken record. Each time Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthi, Iraq, Syria, Iran or biased diplomats strike against Israel, the shockwave ripples across the Middle East, around Europe and the Americas, fracturing democracy, justice and peace.
We hope, Mr President, that democracy will emerge “from Darkness to Light” and – once Hamas and Hezbollah are neutralized, and Iranian nefarious influence is quelled – that Lebanon will regain one day the title of “The Paris of Middle East”.
Most respectfully,
Shimon Samuels
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