France bans Israeli finance minister Smotrich in sanctions

France has banned Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich from entering the country, citing his active promotion of West Bank annexation and what it termed the "recolonisation" of Gaza. The announcement on Tuesday, June 9, 2026, by French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot also included entry bans for four leaders of settler organizations and 21 individuals described as violent settlers.

The French action is part of a coordinated series of sanctions announced by a group of six nations: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Norway, and France. These countries stated the measures target individuals and entities accused of financing, enabling, and carrying out violence against Palestinian communities in the West Bank, as well as those responsible for intensifying settlement expansion.

In a statement on social media, Barrot condemned policies he said the overwhelming majority of the international community, firmly committed to a two-state solution, cannot accept. He specifically criticized Smotrich for advocating new settlements, the economic collapse of the Palestinian Authority, and the recolonization of Gaza.

Israel swiftly condemned the sanctions. A foreign...