Overview

• The French foreign ministry publicly rejected Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s assertion that France’s recognition of a Palestinian state caused hostage and ceasefire talks to collapse.
• A new government-linked X account, French Response, posted timestamps showing Benjamin Netanyahu cited failed negotiations hours before Emmanuel Macron referenced recognition.
• The French thread also highlighted a message from U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff saying Washington would pull out of talks, alleging Hamas was not negotiating in good faith.
• Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said the ministry is building social media monitoring hubs and using an automated response tool to counter what it calls spurious attacks.
• The dispute plays out as UN figures record more than 63,500 deaths in Gaza and as Israel instructs residents to move to a southern “humanitarian area” ahead of operations around Gaza City.