Paris Air Show blocks Israeli stands exhibiting offensive weapons

ISTANBUL

The Paris Air Show, which began Monday, is blocking certain Israeli stands displaying offensive weapons.

Organizers of the event, one of the world’s largest weapons technology fairs, told broadcaster Franceinfo that they had “carried out instructions from the relevant French authorities prior to the opening of the show, regarding the removal of certain equipment presented on Israeli stands.”

Images from the event show black partitions erected around several Israeli stands.

Four major Israeli companies – Rafael, Uvision, Elbit Systems and Israel Aerospace Industries – did not follow the framework limiting the exhibition of offensive weapons, and thus were sanctioned, according to Franceinfo.

A source told the broadcaster that the companies would only be able to reopen their stands if they agree to withdraw the weapons.

Israel's Defense Ministry slammed the decision as "outrageous" and rejected the demand to remove the weapons.

"The French are hiding behind supposedly political considerations to exclude Israeli offensive weapons from an international exhibition – weapons that compete with French industries,” it said in a statement.

French Prime Minister Francois Bayrou later explained their decision, noting although the companies were warned in advance some did not do as instructed.

"The position of the French government was very simple: no offensive war armaments at the exhibition. Defensive war armaments were entirely acceptable, but exhibiting offensive armaments was not allowed," Bayrou told journalists at the event.

He stressed that it would not be acceptable to display offensive weapons at such a fair, considering France's "concern" and "serious attention" on Gaza.

"The situation in Gaza is one that, for the French Republic, demands we clearly express condemnation and distance. One cannot starve a people, one cannot prevent them from accessing humanitarian aid, one cannot isolate them entirely from the world – not without our fundamental values speaking out. And that is what we did through this decision," Bayrou added, referring to the plight of Palestinians in Gaza, where Israel has imposed a months-long humanitarian aid blockade.

Israel’s presence at the Paris Air Show had also drawn criticism from several groups calling for the removal of Israeli companies from Le Bourget, citing the risk of “perpetuating international crime,” according to Franceinfo.

The Paris Air Show, running through next Sunday, takes place against the backdrop of Israel’s continuing genocide in Gaza, in which it has killed over 55,000 Palestinians, as well as hostilities between Israel and its regional rival Iran.