Four months to the day after the Hamas attack on Israel, which killed 1,160 people, including 42 French citizens, a ceremony presided over by Emmanuel Macron is being held at Les Invalides to pay tribute to the French victims, on Wednesday, February 7. In his speech, the President of the Republic is expected to emphasize the importance of the fight against anti-Semitism.
The ceremony is a long-awaited, emotional event with representatives from all religions invited to give meaning to the call for “fraternity” and “reconciliation.” This comes four months after the October 7 massacre, raising criticism of the president’s absence at the march against anti-Semitism in November.
The event will be deeply emotional, as each of the 42 victims will be represented by a photo with their name. The fate of the three French citizens who are still missing will also be discussed, and their families, who wish to attend, will be present.
Some of the families have requested to ban the presence of elected representatives from La France Insoumise (LFI), accusing them of refusing to classify Hamas as a terrorist group. The Élysée has abided by the protocol and invited those who were required to be invited, while leaving it to the members of LFI to decide “the appropriateness of their presence.”
In addition, as per the protocol, LFI elected officials will be present, despite the calls for their exclusion. Their presence has also sparked reactions in the National Assembly, causing discomfort among the allies of the party and outrage among MPs from other parties.
The event will be attended by fifty-five family members of hostages or those killed on October 7, including Yarden Gonen, an Israeli nurse whose sister was abducted by Hamas during the music festival near Gaza. She has dedicated all her energy and time to campaigning for her sister’s release, and she hopes to advocate for her cause with the French President on Wednesday.
In her words, “I really hope to be able to meet him and ask him to do everything he can.”
