Protests in favor of the Palestinians are not allowed by the French government.
Foreigners who break the rules will be “systematically” removed, said Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin. President Emmanuel Macron called for unity.
The move comes as countries in Europe worry that the war between Israel and Hamas will make anti-Semitism worse.
Even though it was illegal, a lot of pro-Palestinian protesters showed up in Paris on Thursday.
At the 3,000-person protest at Place de la République, police arrested 10 people and used water cannons to break up the crowd. Protesters chanted “Israel murderer” and “Palestine will win” and waved Palestinian flags.
The ban was directed by Mr. Darmanin, who said that people who break it should be arrested “because they are likely to cause public disorder.”
But groups that support the Palestinian people said it could hurt free speech and promised to keep protesting in support of the Palestinian people.
A woman named Charlotte Vautier who was at the gathering told Reuters, “We live in a country of civil law, a country where we have the right to stand up and protest.”
“[It is unfair] to forbid for one side and to authorise for the other.”
At the same time, police in Berlin, Germany’s city, have also stopped planned pro-Palestinian protests because of the threat of anti-Semitic speech and the promotion of violence.
Police said that about 60 protesters left Potsdamer Platz on Thursday after being told to do so.
The people around the world who were hurt by Hamas’ attack on Israel
Macron told the French people in a video message to stay united, saying, “Let’s not add national divisions to international divisions.”
He said that Hamas is “a terrorist group that wants the people of Israel to die.”
A total of 13 French people were killed in Hamas’ attack on Israel on Saturday.
According to President Macron, 17 French citizens are missing and are likely among the hostages held by Hamas in Gaza. He also said, “France is doing everything it can with Israel and our partners to bring them home.”
Four kids are among those who are lost.
He said that Israel could protect itself by killing terrorists, but that it “had to protect civilian lives because that’s the duty of democracies.”
“The only response to terrorism is one that is strong but fair,” he stated.
France is home to the most Jews in Europe, with almost 500,000. With about five million people, France has one of the largest Muslim populations in Europe.
On Thursday, Mr. Darmanin told people from the region that Jewish schools and synagogues should have obvious police presence to keep them safe.
He told French radio that 100 acts of antisemitism had been reported since Saturday, with most of them being writing with “swastikas,” “death to Jews,” and “calls to intifadas against Israel.”
He also said that in some cases, people were caught for trying to bring knives into schools and synagogues.
The homes of important French MPs are already being watched by cops. President of the National Assembly Yaël Braun-Pivet and MP Meyer Habib, who are both Jewish, have been offered more safety.
Ms. Braun-Pivet, who is a member of Mr. Macron’s Renaissance party, has been getting death threats, it has come to light.
This week, she had the LED lights in parliament lit up in the colors of the Israeli flag. On Tuesday, before an Assembly meeting, she set aside one minute of silence.
There was also news that Maryam Abu Daqqa, a member of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), would not be able to go to a video showing in parliament next month. The European Union (EU) says that the armed group is a terrorist group.
Meyer Habib speaks for French people living outside of France, which includes people in Israel and the Palestinian Territories. He is a strong backer of Israel. He said, “We are witnessing the return of pogroms” after the Hamas attack.
The Hamas attack and what happened after it have caused a lot of trouble in French politics.
Most parties have spoken out against Saturday’s “terrorist attack” and supported Israel’s right to react. However, Jean-Luc Mélenchon’s far-left La France Insoumise (France Unbowed) party was less clear at first.
The party called the Hamas attack “an armed offensive of Palestinian forces” in a statement, which got harsh criticism from other parties, even those on the left, like the Socialist and Communist parties.
“Zero tolerance” for antisemitism has been announced by Olaf Scholz, the chancellor of Germany.
The pro-Palestinian group Samidoun was seen giving out candy in the Neukolln neighborhood of Berlin to celebrate the Hamas attack. He told parliament that the group would be banned. His words, “We do not tolerate antisemitism,” were added.
A member of the Bundestag named Mr. Sholz said that Germany was responsible for Israel’s safety. As a show of support, German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock is going to visit Israel on Friday.
German officials say that Israeli flags that were flown in support of the country were torn down and destroyed in many towns across the country, including Mainz, Braunschweig, and Heilbronn. This happened sometimes in just a few hours.
