Macron urges 'reform' of Palestinian Authority to run Gaza without Hamas

France may recognize Palestinian state at UN conference in June

FILE PHOTO: France's President Emmanuel Macron speaks in front of humanitarian aid destined to Gaza, at the Egyptian Red Crescent warehouse in Arish, Egypt April 8, 2025.

Reuters

Macron called for Hamas to be disarmed and sidelined

Palestinian Authority has had limited autonomy in West Bank

Plan aims to progress toward two-state solution

French President Emmanuel Macron called Monday for "reform" of the Palestinian Authority as part of a plan that would see the West Bank-based body govern a post-war Gaza without Hamas.

France is among European nations to have backed a plan for Gaza to return to the control of the Ramallah-based authority after nearly two decades of Hamas rule.

"It is essential to set a framework for the day after: disarm and sideline Hamas, define credible governance and reform the Palestinian Authority," Macron said on X after a phone call with his Palestinian counterpart Mahmud Abbas.

"This should allow progress towards a two-state political solution, with a view to the peace conference in June, in the service of peace and security for all."

Macron said last week that France could take the unprecedented step of recognizing a Palestinian state during a United Nations conference in New York in June, sparking condemnation from Israel.

Hamas has governed the Gaza Strip since 2007, when it seized control from the Palestinian Authority after being blocked from exercising real power despite winning a parliamentary election the previous year.

Both France and the United States under Joe Biden have pressed for the Palestinian Authority, which has limited autonomy in parts of the West Bank, to root out corruption and bring in new faces in the hope it could take charge of Gaza.

Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Mustafa and Vice-President of the European Commission Kaja Kallas attend a press conference, following their meeting at his office in the West Bank city of Ramallah Monday, March 24, 2025.Reuters

The Ramallah-based administration, led by 89-year-old Abbas, has been hamstrung by Israel's decades-old occupation of the West Bank and the Palestinian president's own unpopularity.