In France, pro-Palestinian solidarity is being silenced and criminalised | Rokhaya Diallo

The government’s deeply illiberal ‘Yadan bill’ may be dead.

But the threat to legitimate protest certainly is not

Tensions in France over how to respond to a rise in antisemitism have been running high.

A government-backed bill that aimed to deal with the problem was rightly denounced as an attack on freedom of expression before being quietly shelved by the government last month.

https://www.lemonde.fr/en/m-le-mag/article/2026/04/16/what-is-the-controversial-bill-on-antisemitism-french-mps-are-debating_6752478_117.html">Introduced in 2024 by Caroline Yadan, a member of the national assembly, the draft legislation was intended to counter “new forms of antisemitism”.

But while its explanatory memorandum raised legitimate concerns about the sharp https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/aug/15/emmanuel-macron-decries-antisemitic-hatred-after-memorial-tree-cut-down">rise in incidents of antisemitism recorded since the Hamas massacres in Israel on 7 October 2023, its https://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/dyn/17/textes/l17b0575_proposition-loi">wording quickly veered toward a different objective: curbing the ability to criticise Israel.

Rokhaya Diallo is a writer, journalist, film director, activist and Guardian https://www.theguardian.com/world/europe-news">Europe columnist.