French President Emmanuel Macron criticized Israel's ongoing attacks on the Gaza Strip – which have caused global uproar for amounting to genocide – saying that fighting Hamas did not equate to flattening Gaza.
"We cannot let the idea take root that an efficient fight against terrorism implies to flatten Gaza or attack civilian populations indiscriminately," Macron told the France 5 broadcaster on Wednesday.
He called on Israel "to stop this response because it is not appropriate, because all lives are worth the same and we defend them."
While acknowledging "Israel's right to defend itself and fight terror," Macron said France called for the protection of civilians and "a truce leading to a humanitarian cease-fire."
Hamas announced Wednesday that more than 20,000 people, mainly women and children, have been killed by Israeli attacks in Gaza. Israel denies the claims of genocide and argues that its actions target Hamas, not civilians, even though it has been incessantly targeting civilian infrastructure, including schools, hospitals, refugee camps, houses of worship (churches and mosques), U.N. buildings, journalists and the death toll is overwhelmingly civilian.
