Opponents have repeatedly accused Matilde Pano's party of failing to clearly condemn the October 7 attack. Photo: François Greuez/SIPA /Shutterstock
The leader of the French parliament's far-left has been summoned by police for questioning over his alleged justification of terrorism in comments about the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7.
Matilde Panot heads the lower faction House of Parliament of the French Unconquered (LFI) party, which opponents have repeatedly accused of failing to clearly condemn the attack.
LFI, now France's strongest left-wing political force, has in turn denounced what it sees as an erosion of freedom of speech and accused Israel of genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
Ms. Pano said that was the case . for the first time in the history of modern France, the head of the parliamentary faction was summoned for such serious reasons.
Palestinians take control of an Israeli tank after crossing border fence with Israel at Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, October 7, 2023. Photo: UPI/Alamy
“I warn about this serious exploitation of justice to suppress political expression,” she said on Tuesday.
On October 7, the LFI group in parliament described the Hamas attack as “an armed offensive by Palestinian forces.” This occurred «in the context of intensifying Israeli occupation policies» in the Palestinian territories.
LFI firebrand and former presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon called the challenge «an unprecedented event in history.» our democracy» and accused the authorities of «defending genocide.»
Last week in Lille, two conferences by Mr. Mélenchon on the situation in the Middle East were canceled: first at a university and then at a private one.
Hamas fighters and other Palestinian militants crossed the border into Israel on October 7 in an unprecedented attack that killed 1,170 people, according to an Israeli official tally published by AFP.
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About 250 people were kidnapped to Gaza, of whom 129 remain captive. Israel said 34 of them were dead.
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