If the head of state’s trip will certainly not be enough to build national unity within the political class, it must help to temporarily ease tensions in public opinion.
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Emmanuel Macron’s visit to the Middle East, which continues on Wednesday October 25, is also an internal political visit. It is perhaps even, first of all, a visit for internal political purposes. This is the main reason why the head of state waited two weeks before going to Israel, well after Joe Biden, Olaf Scholz or Ursula Von der Leyen. Earlier, in the days following the massacres committed by Hamas, he would have expressed his full solidarity with the Israelis, as he did on Tuesday, but he could not have worried about the fate of civilians Palestinians killed in Gaza and travel to Ramallah, in the West Bank, to meet with Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.
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Likewise, these two weeks of delay were undoubtedly needed for Emmanuel Macron to be able to plead for the relaunch of a political process leading to a “lasting peace” with two States living in security, Israel and a State for the Palestinians.
An essential balance
Why is Emmanuel Macron seeking this position of balance? Firstly because it is the historic position of France that he reminded on Tuesday, successively, to the two parties, Benjamin Netanyahu then Mahmoud Abbas. This balance is essential to extinguish the evil passions which pollute public debate in France. There is an urgent need to reassure the Jews of France, while anti-Semitic acts are increasing, with nearly 600 recorded in 15 days. This is why Emmanuel Macron insisted on the mourning of France, which lost 30 nationals, the highest number of French victims since the Islamist attack in Nice in 2016. But the government is also monitoring the scale of the pro-demonstrations. Palestinians and wants to appease the anger of the Muslim community who accuse him of paying little attention to civilian victims in Gaza.
Can this be enough to build the national union of political leaders? No, definitely not. We saw it again on Tuesday with the many angry reactions from Jean-Luc Mélenchon and his troops. But perhaps this move can help to temporarily ease tensions in public opinion a little. Basically, at the Élysée, we are relying more on the wisdom of French society which has gone through waves of terrorism in recent years without tearing itself apart rather than on that of the apprentice sorcerers of the extreme right or the radical left who adding fuel to the fire in Parliament or on social networks.