France Moves to Dissolve Urgence Palestine Amid Gaza Genocide Protests
Paris (Quds News Network)- As Israel continues its deadly genocide in Gaza, French authorities have begun dissolving one of the country’s few pro-Palestine organizations, Urgence Palestine. The group has been at the forefront of protests against Israel’s military actions and France’s complicity.
On April 29, the French Interior Ministry officially notified Urgence Palestine that it was launching dissolution procedures. The group, founded in October 2023, organized large protests in Paris and across France, calling attention to Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
Since the genocide began on October 7, 2023, Israeli forces have killed and wounded more than 172,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children. Over 11,000 people remain missing. The genocide has also displaced hundreds of thousands and devastated the Strip’s infrastructure.
France, meanwhile, has restricted solidarity actions. Authorities banned pro-Palestinian protests in the genocide’s early weeks, fined participants, and pressured activists. Although some restrictions were later eased, several outspoken critics of Israel have faced arrest, prosecution, or financial penalties.
French prosecutors have also pursued legal action against other pro-Palestine figures. In January, they sought an eight-month suspended sentence and a €4,000 fine for political scientist François Burgat over posts condemning Israel’s genocide in Gaza.
The crackdown has sparked backlash from across the French left. On May 6, hundreds rallied in Paris’s 19th arrondissement to denounce the government’s campaign against Urgence Palestine and the anti-fascist youth collective La Jeune Garde, also facing dissolution.
Students, lawmakers, and activists stood before a crowd waving keffiyehs and Palestinian flags. “They want us silent, but we won’t back down,” declared Yasmine, a Palestinian student who was first to speak.
Supporters say Urgence Palestine has given Palestinians and their allies a rare voice in France — one the government now wants to erase.
