Among them were MPs to the National Assembly Francois Ruffin, Alexis Corbiere and Julie Ozenne from the environmental party, Communist MP Soumya Bourouah and Communist Senator Marianne Margate.The politicians said on Sunday that they were invited by the French consulate in Jerusalem on a five-day journey to Israel and Palestinian territories, which was described as a mission "to strengthen global cooperation and the culture of peace".“For the first time, 2 days before our departure, the Israeli authorities cancelled our entry visas, which were approved a period ago” – said the legislators in their statement, calling the decision ‘collective punishment’.They described the visa ban as "serious breach of diplomatic relations" And they called Macron to react."Intentionally preventing elected officials and parliamentarians from travelling cannot be left without consequences" They added it.The group stated that their parties had been demanding designation of the Palestinian state for decades.The Israeli Ministry of the Interior defended the cancellation, citing the law that allows authorities to refuse entry to those who "could act against the State of Israel".Tensions with Western legislators have intensified in fresh months among the expanding criticisms of the Israeli military run against Hamas in the Gaza Strip.
Earlier in April, 2 British parliamentarians were prevented from entering the country after being accused of planning “To spread hatred speech”.
The Israeli authorities claimed that the couple had wrongly presented their objective, while the British Ministry of abroad Affairs defined the decision as ‘unacceptable’.Earlier, the EU parliamentary delegation canceled the scheduled visit to Jerusalem and Ramallah after the entry of French MP Rima Hassan, Irish MP Lynn Boylan and 2 EU workers was refused.Israeli officials stated that they "they consistently worked to advance the boycott of Israel, in addition to many public statements on both social media and media interviews"."The State of Israel is not obliged to let any authoritative from a abroad country, including members of parliament, to enter if they are working on a boycott and undermine his legitimacy" “Amichai Chikli said at the time.
Translated by Google Translator
source:https://www.rt.com/news/616039-israel-cancels-visas-french-mps/
