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“The rules of the game have changed,” Chikli said. “Those who support Hamas and those who support the boycott movement against the State of Israel will not enter it.”
By United with Israel Staff
Israel has denied entry to French journalist Alice Froussard and is moving to deport her after officials reviewing her application for a permanent work visa cited a series of anti-Israel statements she allegedly made in recent years.
According to reports, Froussard arrived in Israel on Thursday seeking to regularize her status and continue her journalistic work in the region. However, the Population and Immigration Authority refused her entry following a recommendation from the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs and Combating Antisemitism.
Officials said the review uncovered statements in which Froussard described Israeli laws as “draconian” and argued that the October 7 Hamas massacre should be examined “in its context.”
Diaspora Affairs Minister Amichai Chikli defended the decision, saying Israel is no longer willing to grant entry to individuals who support Hamas or efforts to isolate the Jewish state.
“The rules of the game have changed,” Chikli said. “Those who support Hamas and those who support the boycott movement against the State of Israel will not enter it.”
Taking aim at French President Emmanuel Macron and Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, Chikli added that France’s recent policies had made the decision easier.
“To President Macron and Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, who recognized a Palestinian state while our hostages were languishing in captivity and who are imposing sanctions on Israeli ministers and citizens, I say: You made this decision very easy for me.”
The move reportedly sparked anger within the French Embassy in Israel and is likely to add further strain to already tense relations between Jerusalem and Paris.
The case follows a similar decision last month involving American YouTuber Tyler Oliveira, who was denied entry and deported after Israeli authorities reviewed comments they said crossed the line from political criticism into antisemitic incitement.
According to the Ministry of Diaspora Affairs, Oliveira had made repeated statements accusing Jews of exploiting Holocaust memory and manipulating accusations of antisemitism for political purposes. Officials said those remarks played a central role in the decision to bar him from entering the country.
The latest case underscores Israel’s increasingly aggressive approach toward foreign public figures whose statements are viewed by officials as supportive of Hamas, antisemitic, or hostile to the legitimacy of the Jewish state.
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