France bans Israeli minister Itamar Ben-Gvir after flotilla detainee video

France has announced a ban on Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir from entering French territory after a video showed him mocking activists detained from a Gaza-bound aid flotilla. French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said the move took effect immediately and was linked to what he described as Ben-Gvir's "reprehensible actions" towards French and European citizens involved in the humanitarian mission. The decision adds a new diplomatic layer to an already tense dispute over the treatment of the activists and Israel's interception of the convoy.

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According to the French statement, the ban follows a video published by Ben-Gvir on Wednesday showing detained activists in the southern port of Ashdod. The activists had been seized by Israeli soldiers in international waters and were awaiting deportation, the report said. In the clip, dozens of people are seen kneeling with their foreheads to the ground and their hands tied, while Ben-Gvir is shown heckling them and waving an Israeli flag.

Barrot also said France, together with Italy, was calling for European Union-level sanctions against the minister. The row has already prompted wider diplomatic reactions. Spain has urged the European Union to sanction Ben-Gvir, while the United Kingdom summoned Israel's most senior diplomat in Britain following what it called the inflammatory video.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Ben-Gvir's treatment of the activists was not in line with Israel's values and norms. Netanyahu had earlier denounced the flotilla mission as a malicious scheme intended to support Hamas, underscoring the sharp disagreement between Israel and the activists' supporters over the purpose of the voyage. The incident matters because it has moved beyond a dispute over a single convoy and into a broader argument about how states should respond to the detention and treatment of foreign nationals at sea.

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The activists were part of the Global Sumud Flotilla, which had departed from Turkey last week on around 50 vessels. It was described as the latest attempt by activists to breach Israel's blockade of Gaza, after Israeli forces intercepted a previous convoy last month. The French move suggests the issue is now affecting relations not only with Israel but also among European governments weighing how far to go in response.

The flotilla itself has become a recurring point of friction in the wider conflict around Gaza, with supporters presenting it as a humanitarian mission and Israeli officials treating it as a political challenge to the blockade. The report says a number of Irish activists have already returned home, indicating that deportations are under way. The video from Ashdod has become the immediate trigger for the latest diplomatic escalation, because it involved foreign citizens and prompted public criticism from several European capitals.

What remains unclear is whether France's ban will be matched by further national measures or whether the push for EU-level sanctions will gain enough support to move forward. It is also not yet clear how many activists remain in Israeli custody or how quickly the rest will be deported. The next developments to watch are any formal EU response, further statements from Israel, and whether other European governments follow France's lead.

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