While French President Emmanuel Macron is trying to lead the international community, threatening to recognize the Palestinian state and sanction Israel, he conveniently forgets the millions being victimized and denied freedom in Algeria, a former French colony with ties to Paris. Some ten million Berbers reside in that former French colony. The Algerian regime’s aggression against them has evoked not a word from Macron, in a clear demonstration of how that which he chooses to “champion” is only that which serves his political interests, even if it means leaving former French subjects to suffer.
France has lost much of its luster on the international diplomatic scene; but still holds a semblance of influence in Europe and some countries in the Middle East and North Africa. He is also continuing a constant feature of French foreign policy since the days of former French Presidents de Gaulle and Jacques Chirac, maintaining an antagonistic position towards Israel. It was surprising when right after the mass murders, rapes and kidnappings carried out in Israel on October 7, 2023, Macron called for an international coalition to fight Hamas. A year later, he has forgotten all about that and, in a volte-face, is now de facto rewarding Hamas. The terrorist group has congratulated and thanked him for saying France is planning to recognize a Palestinian state. Macron is also working to convince British Prime Minister Keir Starmer to join him in announcing recognition in June.
France is one of the Western nations that has been the most penetrated by the Muslim Brotherhood and stricken by Islamic terrorism over the past 40 years, its own security services claim in a new report. The level of attacks and bloodshed have been far less than Israel has suffered, of course, but nevertheless one would expect Macron to know better than to side with the terror regime in Gaza. However, the Palestinians have become a huge cause celebre for the Muslim population in France, which represents at least 10 percent of the electorate, so Macron is quite happy to pander to that portion of the home population.
All this pandering and posturing will come at the expense of the West, the moderate Arab states, Israel, and ultimately, the Palestinians themselves. Macron’s divide-and-rule efforts could derail the Trump administration’s efforts to bring stability and prosperity to the Middle East through the Abraham Accords. The U.S. should reject French meddling in Gaza, premature European recognition of a Palestinian state, and Macron’s persistent self-aggrandizement. Trying to declare a state into existence with more than one terrorist group firmly rooted in place is bound to fail, leaving everyone—the U.S., moderate Arab states, and, of course, Israel—stuck with the bill and trying to clean up the inevitable bloody mess that is likely to result from the ill-conceived French approach.
One would think that Macron would be spurred to action about the plight of another group that should be much closer to his heart. The Berbers are the original inhabitants of North Africa. They are not Arabs, nor were they Muslims before being forced to convert to Islam by invading Arab armies. Amazigh, which means “free people” is what the Berber people prefer to use as a term to describe themselves. Despite their indigenous presence, they are treated like second-class citizens in Algeria, which has pushed an aggressive policy of Arabization for years, determined to deny their identity at all costs.
The Algerian government has encouraged Arabs to move into traditional Berber areas—an ironic neo-colonialist practice for a regime that complains so bitterly about French colonization. Since the 1990s, Berber women have faced pressure from Islamist groups to ditch their traditional colorful dresses for hijabs and niqabs. Christian converts, especially from the Berber community, are under tremendous pressure. The Algerian authorities have shut down 42 of the 43 churches in the Kabylia region. The Kabyle are one of the largest concentrations of Berber people in Algeria.
Berber leader Kamira Nait Sid, the co-president of the World Amazigh Congress, a group fighting for Berber rights, was imprisoned for three years for supposedly "undermining national unity and state security” and “spreading fake news online.” A whopping 90 percent of Algeria's political prisoners, locked up without trial, are Amazigh. The regime is even going after celebrities who also happen to be French. Last November, Boualem Sansal, a well-known Algerian novelist with French citizenship and Berber roots, was arrested when he landed in Algiers and accused of spying and harming Algeria's security. He has been a vocal critic of the regime, opposes Islamism, and even holds pro-Israel views. The French National Assembly has called for “immediate and unconditional release” of Sansal from Algerian prison. Perhaps afraid of one of Algeria’s allies—the mullah-led dictatorship in Iran, Macron remains disengaged.
Meanwhile, the Movement for the Self-Determination of Kabylia (MAK), a group peacefully campaigning for more say and cultural rights, has been labelled "terrorist" despite never resorting to violence and accused of being a “Zionist” vehicle, the ultimate insult for the Algerian regime.
Despite their long history and the fact that there are 24 million Berbers across North Africa, with another 5-6 million scattered around France, Canada, and the U.S., Berbers still don't have a recognized homeland and face their culture being suppressed and their political voice being stifled. The push for an independent Kabyle state has been revived recently with the goal of having its own president, its own parliament, its own authority, and its own sovereignty over itself. Maybe this is something Macron should prioritize instead of pushing so hard for a “Palestinian State” that is likely to fail at the expense of the U.S., Israel and Arab states.
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