Former Israeli PM warns recognition of Palestine will export terror from Gaza to European capitals

Former Israeli prime minister Naftali Bennett has issued a stark warning to European nations moving to recognise Palestinian statehood, claiming the decision will pave the way for global terror.

In a fiery post on X, Bennett accused countries such as France of rewarding Hamas and risking their own security. “We tried a Palestinian state before and it became a terror state, a full-blown terror state,” he wrote. “From their terrorist state in Gaza, they launched a horrible massacre and slaughtered 1,163 civilians,” he added, referencing the October 7, 2023 attacks, when Hamas militants stormed southern Israel in one of the deadliest days in the country’s history.

Bennett argued that the violence Israel experienced was only a preview of worse to come. “What Israel endured on October 7 was a pilot,” he warned, insisting that “ISIS terror is on its way.”

Directly addressing European capitals, Bennett accused leaders of wilful blindness. “They will pay the price for rewarding this Islamist terror,” he said. “Palestine today means Paris tomorrow.”

The remarks came as a growing number of Western allies—including the UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, France, Luxembourg and Malta—announced or prepared to announce their recognition of a Palestinian state. The coordinated wave, framed as an attempt to preserve the two-state solution, has been condemned in Israel as a betrayal in the middle of war.

Hamas, for its part, praised the recognition drive as “an important step” toward the establishment of an independent state with Jerusalem as its capital. The movement, designated as a terrorist organisation by the EU, US and UK, has sought to portray the recognitions as vindication of its cause, further fuelling Israeli fears.

Bennett, who briefly served as Israel’s prime minister in 2021–22, pointed to radicalisation in Europe as proof that Palestinian recognition could embolden extremists. He cited France in particular, noting violent anti-Israel protests, attacks on Jewish communities and threats from Islamist groups. “They’ve already said their goal is to kill Christian infidels. They’ve already launched terror attacks all across Europe,” he claimed.

His warnings echo those of current prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has repeatedly attacked French president Emmanuel Macron for backing Palestinian recognition. Macron has argued the move is necessary to salvage any hope of peace, but his stance has deepened tensions with Israel, already angered by French criticism of the Gaza campaign and settlement expansion.

For Bennett, however, the matter is existential. “We’ve learned this the hard way,” he said. “Will you?” His message was clear: Israel views the October 7 massacre not as an isolated event, but as proof of what a Palestinian state under current conditions could mean for global security.

The debate comes amid a wider diplomatic crisis. At the UN, France and Saudi Arabia have co-chaired a push for a renewed two-state framework, while the US and Israel have boycotted talks. With Mahmoud Abbas promising reforms to the Palestinian Authority and Arab states backing the recognition drive, Europe’s role is under intense scrutiny.

But Bennett insists Europe’s gamble is reckless. To him, statehood recognition amid ongoing war and Hamas control is not a step toward peace but an invitation to terror on a continental scale. His refrain—“Palestine today means Paris tomorrow”—is likely to reverberate in capitals already grappling with political pressure, rising antisemitism, and the spectre of Islamist violence.