France bans Israel’s finance minister, slams him for promoting ‘recolonisation’ of Gaza
Key takeaways
- Smotrich was among dozens of Israelis who were slapped with sanctions by France, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Norway.
- By: FRANCE 24 Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich shows the E1 settlement project during a press conference near the settlement of Maale Adumim, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on August 14, 2025.
- Smotrich, of the far-right Religious Zionist party, is the second Israeli minister France has banned from its territory in recent months.
Why this matters: an international story with cross-border implications worth tracking.
France on Tuesday banned Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich from entry, slamming the far-right politician’s calls for the annexation of the occupied West Bank, new settlements in the area and the “recolonisation” of Gaza. Smotrich was among dozens of Israelis who were slapped with sanctions by France, Britain, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Norway.
By: FRANCE 24 Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich shows the E1 settlement project during a press conference near the settlement of Maale Adumim, in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, on August 14, 2025. © Ohad Zwigenberg, AP/ File picture France on Tuesday banned Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich from entering the country, the French foreign minister said, slamming him for actively promoting the annexation of the West Bank and the “re-colonisation” of Gaza.
“Four leaders of settler organisations, and twenty-one violent settlers” were also banned from French territory, Jean-Noël Barrot wrote on X, condemning a “policy that the overwhelming majority of the international community, firmly committed to the two-state solution, cannot accept”.