French court lifts ban on Israeli companies at weapons expo
4 Min Read
A judge finds that France's decision to prohibit Israeli exhibitors from the Eurosatory arms expo is "discriminatory".
-
Protesters outside the Eurosatory exhibition, an event for the defense and security industry, in Villepinte, France, on Monday. (AP)
A Paris court found on Tuesday that France's decision to restrict Israeli businesses from one of the world's largest weapons exhibits was "discriminatory" and ordered that the ban be lifted.
Eurosatory, an expo for the defense and weaponry sector held every two years northeast of Paris, began on Monday without any Israeli delegates. The organizers had followed a French government decision to rescind their invites due to "Israel's" war on Gaza.
The French Defense Ministry last month ordered organizers to ban the Israeli military industry from setting up a stand at the event, saying that "the conditions are no longer right to host Israeli companies at the Paris show, given that the French president is calling for the cessation of IDF (Israeli occupation forces) operation in Rafah."
French President Emmanuel Macron expressed he was "outraged" and declared that similar "operations" in Gaza should end.
Prior to the ban decision, 74 Israeli firms had been set to be represented at the June 17 to 21 security trade show, including 10 firms that were set to exhibit weapons.
Organizers did say that Israeli individuals would be able to attend the fair.
COGES Events, the firm that organizes Eurosatory and is a subsidiary of a trade organization of French military and security sectors, prohibited Israeli companies from holding booths at the exhibition and erased all mention of them from its website.
Eurosatory has approximately 2,000 exhibitors from over 60 nations, bringing together military and security leaders from across the world with manufacturers displaying drones, missiles, and other weapons and technology.
However, the Paris Commercial Court ruled on Tuesday, following a challenge filed by the France-Israel Chamber of Commerce, that the ban was "invalid" and ordered COGES Events to reinstate Israeli enterprises citing unfair discrimination.
It was unclear if the firms would be restored before the event ended on Friday. Other cases against France's decision to ban Israeli firms from the expo are still pending.
Several pro-Palestine organizations filed a lawsuit, charging that COGES Events needed to make further efforts to comply with the embargo, claiming that some of the Israeli corporations may be supporting IOF in Gaza. A court in Bobigny, a suburb north of Paris, agreed last week, ruling that the weapons show's organizers had to bar not only Israeli companies but also anyone acting as an intermediary or representative for an Israeli company and to ensure that no exhibitors received, sold, or promoted Israeli weapons.
Association France Palestine Solidarité, one of the organizations that filed the suit, praised the decision, saying in a statement that "it is the responsibility of all players, political and economic, to do their utmost to put an end to the ongoing genocide committed by the state of Israel against the Palestinian population."
COGES Events, with the help of French authorities, challenged the verdict, claiming that it went much beyond what the government had originally asked. The Paris Appeals Court considered the appeal on Tuesday.
France denies providing 'Israel' with arms for war on Gaza
In late March, France's Defense Minister disputed charges made by investigative journalists that France supplied parts for weaponry used by the Israeli occupation in its war on Gaza.
According to investigative websites Disclose and Marsactu, Marseille-based business Eurolinks provided "Israel" with M27 links, which are metal parts used to unite rifle cartridges into ammo belts for machine guns.
Such munitions "could have been used against civilians in the Gaza Strip," they said.
The investigative publications' information was substantiated by images showing the linkages, which they claimed were taken on October 23, weeks after the war began.
AFP was unable to confirm the claimed shipment but French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu told reporters in Paris that Eurolinks' export license to Israeli business IMI Systems "only covers re-export to third countries" rather than usage by the IOF.
Left-wingers have urged France to follow Canada's lead and prohibit all arms shipments to the occupation.
In a recent parliamentary session, MP Mathilde Panot, head of the France Unbowed (LFI) opposition party, condemned the shipments as a "massive scandal" and accused Lecornu of "lying".
