Nadene Goldfoot
Remember a high- profile bombing near Macron's hotel in Damascus, Syria on July 7th, of this year of 2026? Just notice the connection again with Macron and the Palestinians.
- The Bombing: Two improvised explosive devices (one in a car and one in a garbage bin) detonated near the Four Seasons Hotel in Damascus where Macron had spent the night, injuring 18 people.
- Why He Missed It: Macron was completely unharmed because he had left the hotel 10 minutes earlier and was at the presidential palace meeting with the new Syrian President, Ahmed al-Sharaa (who came to power after Bashar al-Assad was ousted). (Saved by an unexpected 10 minutes change in his schedule)
- The Meeting in Turkey: —Immediately after his historic stop in Syria, Macron flew directly to Ankara, Turkey, to attend a major NATO summit.
French Army occupied Syrian coast 1920:
- Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS): Emerged as the dominant de facto authority following the fall of the Assad regime, and remains designated as a UN Security Council and U.S. terrorist organization due to its historical links to Al-Qaeda.
- Islamic State (ISIS): Maintains active cells in parts of Syria, launching periodic attacks and operating covertly despite territorial losses.
- Hezbollah and Iran-backed Shia Militias: Historically supported the Assad regime, with ongoing presence and border-region interactions as the new government reorganizes security.
- Jolani, President of Syria: Ahmed al-Sharaa, formerly known by his nom de guerre Abu Mohammad al-Jolani, is the interim president of Syria. Liked by Trump who likes people who can control others, Rise to Power: He led Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) and allied opposition forces in the offensive that toppled Bashar al-Assad's regime in December 2024. He was named transitional president on January 29, 2025; he joined insurgent groups in Iraq following the 2003 U.S. invasion, was detained at Camp Bucca, and later founded the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front in Syria. He broke ties with al-Qaeda in 2016 and rebranded the group as Hayat Tahrir al-Sham.. In November 2025, he met with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House, following the UN Security Council's lifting of terror-related sanctions against him.
The Palestinian Authority has informed France that elections to the Palestinian Legislative Council will be postponed by several months, due to "fundamental obstacles affecting their inclusiveness, freedom of participation and the integrity of the electoral process.” The elections had been scheduled for November 28 following a pledge Abbas made to French President Emmanuel Macron, which played a significant role in Macron's decision to recognize a Palestinian state.
Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas pledged to French President Emmanuel Macron (and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman) to hold national legislative and presidential elections, enact major governance and political reforms, abolish prisoner ("pay-to-slay") payments to jailed militants, and assume sole governance and security in Gaza.
France: France has joined calls targeting illegal settlement goods and previously moved toward formal recognition of Palestinian statehood, while condemning the October 7 Hamas attacks and antisemitism., allowing their enemy (Palestinians) to be closer so that they can hit them better !
I note that England, who held the mandate over Palestine which included our present Israel, is against her today, as she was then.
- Sanctions and Settlement Bans: Several nations—including the UK, France, Canada, and others—have moved to ban goods from illegal West Bank settlements and impose sanctions on extremist ministers or violent settlers.
- Divergent National Stances:
- Spain & Ireland: Spain has imposed arms embargoes, withdrawn its ambassador, and strongly pushed for Palestinian UN membership, while Ireland and Norway have faced sharp Israeli backlash for recognizing a Palestinian state. (OH? I wonder why?)
- I note that Ireland has also been anti-Israel for a long time. I remember their President, Robinson. And that was a country where Jews had gone after finding England rather repulsive, with Chaim Herzog, who was born in Belfast and raised in Dublin (the son of Ireland's Chief Rabbi, Isaac Halevi Herzog), and later served as the President of Israel from 1983 to 1993.
