Israel deports French journalist accused of supporting Hamas

Israeli authorities have deported a French journalist who has often been critical of Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza and its policies in the occupied West Bank.

A spokesperson for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs said on Thursday that France was supporting Alice Froussard, but that Israel ultimately had the legal right to deport her. Israel has been widely accused of suppressing the free press by clamping down on media outlets and targeting journalists.

No official reason was given for the journalist’s deportation, but a senior Israeli minister later accused her of supporting Hamas.

Israeli Minister for Diaspora Affairs Amichai Chikli wrote on social media of his joy that “Alice Froussard, a French journalist who supports Hamas, and who claims that the October 7 massacre must be viewed ‘in context’, is making her way from Ben Gurion Airport back to Paris”.

The barring of the journalist put the spotlight on Israel’s long-running efforts to suppress international coverage of its siege of Gaza and invasion of Lebanon. While reporters from across the globe have been prevented from reporting from the Palestinian territory, numerous locally based journalists have been killed during the conflict that began following the Hamas-led attacks on October 7, 2023.

The Foreign Press Association has condemned Froussard’s treatment, stating that Israel had already authorised her travel to the country prior to her arrival.

“This is not the first case in which the Israeli government decides that the journalistic coverage is ‘one-sided’,” it said in a statement.

Israel has been repeatedly criticised for restricting media coverage of its actions in Gaza. Not a single foreign reporter has been allowed to enter the enclave since it began its assault nearly three years ago.