France’s Controversial Antisemitism Bill Divides Lawmakers Over Israel Link and Free Speech

France’s government-backed draft law, known as the Yadan law, would widen the offense of ‘apology for terrorism’ to include speech that implicitly justifies or downplays terrorism and would ban calls for destroying any country recognised by France (including Israel and potentially Palestine); the proposal has split National Assembly members, with critics arguing it could chill legitimate criticism of Israel and fuel anti-Semitism due to vague wording, while supporters say it targets a new form of hatred tied to anti‑Zionism after the Gaza conflict; a petition gathering more than 160,000 signatures accompanies the debate ahead of a planned vote.