Netanyahu challenges Macron’s plan to recognize Palestinian state

A week after French President Emmanuel Macron said France could recognize a Palestinian state in the coming months, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told Macron over a phone call on Tuesday that doing so would be a victory for Hamas and Iran. Israel’s renewed offensives in Gaza continue to exacerbate the worst humanitarian crisis in the enclave since the start of the war, and Macron has been increasingly outspoken about the need for a new ceasefire and humanitarian relief in Gaza.