Following the decision to bar Israeli companies from the major arms exhibition Eurosatory, a French district court on Saturday banned all Israeli nationals from participating in the event.
France's initial decision last month to exclude Israel from the fair was driven by suspicions of war crimes and genocide in Gaza. This led to the cancellation of the Israeli pavilion, which was set to feature 74 exhibitors. At first, the organizers indicated that Israeli citizens could still attend the fair.
However, a pro-Palestinian organization challenged this concession, filing a petition that argued canceling the pavilion did not guarantee the absence of Israelis at the event. The court sided with this argument, ordering the fair organizers to block Israeli citizens from entering, on the grounds that they might act as intermediaries for Israeli arms companies. The court maintained that the organizers had left a loophole allowing the potential participation of Israeli weapons manufacturers or any representatives of Israeli arms companies.
The court's decision prohibits entry to any individual or legal entity that could act as an intermediary for Israeli companies. It also stated that the organizers' decision to allow the entry of Israeli company representatives was blatantly illegal. The court ordered the organizing company to post the decision at the entrances of the Villepinte Exhibition Centre on the outskirts of Paris, where the prestigious arms fair is held. The pro-Palestinian organization welcomed the decision, interpreting it unequivocally: to ban Israelis from the arms fair and, in other words, ensure the fair is free of Israelis.
Israeli defense industry representatives who planned to attend the fair announced they would withdraw due to the ruling. This decision deals a significant blow to Israel's arms industry, casting it as ostracized on the international stage. Additionally, Israeli companies had invested substantial funds in preparing for the fair, rendering their efforts futile.
Sources familiar with the matter said the organizing company had filed an appeal against the decision, noting that the ruling would be made Monday, on the fair’s opening day. Senior French officials said that the fair's organizers appealed the decision, supported by the Élysée Palace, arguing that the judge’s interpretation of the president's decision was entirely mistaken. It remains unclear if Israeli citizens will be allowed to enter the fair until the appeal results are known.
"This is a disgrace. It’s like 'No Jews and dogs allowed.' This will snowball. We are being treated like lepers in France. What’s next? Will they want us to come to the Paris Olympics in disguise so they don’t know there are competitors from Israel?" a source in the Israeli arms industry said.
"The Foreign Ministry must raise hell. Ambassadors have been recalled for lesser issues. This is an unprecedented escalation following the decision to bar defense industries from the exhibition. There are concerns about further cancellations of both exhibitions and procurements."