A Palestinian flag unveiled by a member of parliament sparked a commotion in the French parliament on Tuesday. Rachel Kéké of the left-wing populist party La France Insoumise (LFI) waved the flag at the start of a question and answer session in the Chamber of Deputies. She stood among other left-wing MPs wearing green, white, red and black clothing – the colors of the Palestinian flag.
The MPs from the LFI, Greens and Communists had sat in parliament in such a way that the colors of their clothing formed the Palestinian flag from a distance. Parliament President Yaël Braun-Pivet reprimanded Kéké and temporarily suspended the parliamentary session. With regard to the choice of clothing, she also stressed that MPs should express their opinions “only orally”.
The question time was about the possible recognition of a Palestinian state. European Affairs Minister Jean-Noël Barrot referred to the position of President Emmanuel Macron, who had made it clear “that this is not a taboo.” The head of state had recently stated that he believed the recognition of a Palestinian state was generally correct, but that the timing was premature at the moment.
Last week, Spain, Ireland and Norway officially recognised an independent Palestinian state. In doing so, they broke with the long-standing position of Western countries of only recognising a Palestinian state as part of a peace agreement with Israel. Germany continues to support this approach.