US ambassador to France criticizes Macron over rising anti-Semitism

The US ambassador to France, Charles Kushner, has written to President Emmanuel Macron to express concern over what he described as insufficient government action against anti-Semitism, following similar criticism from 'Israeli' Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Dated August 25, the 81st anniversary of the Allied liberation of Paris, which ended the deportation of Jews from French soil, Kushner’s letter highlighted a sharp increase in anti-Semitic attacks across the country.

Read more: Netanyahu accuses Macron of anti-Semitism in new letter

“I write out of deep concern over the dramatic rise of anti-Semitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by your government to confront it,” Kushner wrote in the letter, a copy of which was obtained by Agence France-Presse (AFP).

He added, “In France, not a day passes without Jews assaulted in the street, synagogues or schools defaced, or Jewish-owned businesses vandalized.”

Earlier this week, Netanyahu accused Macron of contributing to a surge in anti-Semitism following the French president’s announcement last month that he would recognise a Palestinian state. The French presidency dismissed the claim as “abject” and “erroneous,” adding, “This is a time for seriousness and responsibility, not for conflation and manipulation.”