France criticised Israel on November 13 for banning hard-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon and Mathilde Panot from entering the country. Israel said it took this step because of the party’s extreme anti-Israel stance. This move sparked tension, as many officials called the decision demagogic while the two sides got further apart.
PARIS, Nov 13 (Reuters) - France has criticised as "demagogic" a decision by Israel to ban French hard-left presidential candidate Jean-Luc Melenchonand another leading figure in his France Unbowed (La France Insoumise) party from entering the country.
Israel's Foreign Ministry said on Thursday it would bar Melenchon and Mathilde Panot, the party's parliamentary group chair, over "the extreme anti-Israel stance of La France Insoumise party and the outrageous statements made by its leaders."