French President Emmanuel Macron and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas at the Elysée Palace in Paris, November 11, 2025 KAMIL ZIHNIOGLU FOR LE MONDE
With slow steps, Mahmoud Abbas reached the steps of the Elysée, hand in hand with Emmanuel Macron, as if supported by the French president in his final efforts for peace and the affirmation of a Palestinian state. On Tuesday, November 11, the 90-year-old leader, visiting Paris for the first time since France's recognition of Palestine, greeted, weary but moved, the "courageous position" of his French counterpart. On September 22, during the United Nations General Assembly in New York, Macron had defied the anger of Israel and the United States to launch a broad movement in favor of Palestinian sovereignty, alongside a dozen countries, including the United Kingdom and Canada.
Subscribers only
Macron's full speech on France's recognition of the State of Palestine
The recognition remains symbolic for now. Paris will open an embassy in Palestine only when the remains of the four Israeli hostages still held by Hamas are returned to their families. However, this gesture marks a "historic turning point," Abbas said. "The path to freedom is closer than ever before," he declared, addressing the "great Palestinian people" and expressing hope for "two states [Israeli and Palestinian] living side by side, in peace and security."
