France reportedly denied entry to settlement council chief Yossi Dagan as French lawmakers advanced a bill to ban settlement trade.
Key Developments
- Israeli media reported that French authorities turned Dagan away at a Paris airport.
- More than 100 French lawmakers back a bill to ban trade with illegal Israeli settlements.
- Bidding for 2,167 settlement homes in the E1 area is set to open Dec. 1.
French authorities denied entry to Yossi Dagan, head of an Israeli settlement council in the northern occupied West Bank, after he arrived in Paris last week for meetings with elected French officials, Anadolu reported Wednesday, citing Israeli broadcaster i24NEWS.
Dagan’s office told the broadcaster that immigration officials questioned him at passport control and showed him documents citing his role in building 35 settlements in the occupied West Bank and his efforts to reestablish Gush Katif, a bloc of Israeli settlements evacuated from the Gaza Strip in 2005.
French authorities have not publicly confirmed the reasons cited by Dagan’s office. Dagan told Israeli Army Radio that a French police representative had described the decision as political, Israel’s Channel 15 reported.
“Today it’s me, and tomorrow it could be any other Israeli citizen,” Channel 15 quoted Dagan as saying.
After being turned away, Dagan traveled to Prague, where he spent three days meeting Czech government officials and members of both houses of parliament, according to i24NEWS.
Exclusive: In an unusual move, France barred Yossi Dagan, head of the Samaria Regional Council in the West Bank, from entering the country. @amichaistein1 reports https://t.co/gFboWoaaUV
— The Jerusalem Post (@Jerusalem_Post) November 11, 2026
Settlement Trade Targeted
Separately, French lawmakers have submitted a bill to the National Assembly that would ban imports from illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank and prohibit commercial and financial dealings that help sustain them, Anadolu reported.
The bill, introduced by Socialist Party First Secretary Olivier Faure, has the backing of more than 100 lawmakers from eight political groups. A parliamentary committee approved the proposal, and a vote in the full National Assembly is expected on Nov. 19.
The proposed restrictions would cover services such as tourist accommodation rentals in settlements. Companies that violate the ban could face fines, and the bill also provides for prison sentences. The National Assembly and Senate would have to agree on the same text for it to become law.
Faure said the bill targets economic ties with settlements. He argued that France cannot consistently condemn settlements as illegal while allowing commercial dealings that help sustain them.
France announced entry bans in February 2024 on 28 Israeli settlers it accused of attacking Palestinian civilians.
The European Union later reached an agreement on sanctions against settlers over attacks on Palestinians.
In July, EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas said a majority of member states backed action on trade with illegal Israeli settlements.
Israel Advances E1 Settlement Plans as Raids Sweep the Occupied West Bank
Israel Advances E1 Plan
The French bill comes as Israel prepares to open bidding on Dec. 1 for 2,167 settlement homes in the E1 area east of occupied East Jerusalem, according to Ir Amim, Bimkom and Peace Now.
The three Israeli organizations said bids would be accepted until Dec. 28.
The E1 project would cut occupied East Jerusalem off from Palestinian communities to its east and disrupt territorial links between the northern and southern occupied West Bank.
Governments that have opposed the project warn it would undermine the prospects for a viable Palestinian state.
UN Security Council Resolution 2334, adopted in 2016, states that Israeli settlements in Palestinian territory occupied since 1967, including East Jerusalem, have no legal validity and constitute a flagrant violation of international law.
(PC, Anadolu, Israeli Media)
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