French Muslim Council Urges Imams to Promote Peace Amid Gaza Conflict

The French Council of the Muslim Faith (CFCM) joins the call for appeasement in France, launched by the Conference of Religious Leaders in France (CRCF). The latter has urged "the political, religious, cultural forces of the whole world to act so that a just and lasting peace can be built in Israel and Palestine. [...]" On Thursday, the CFCM in turn called on the imams and mosques of France to limit themselves to prayers for peace in their Friday sermons, to "redouble their vigilance" in their sermons, "in an extremely sensitive international and national context", to pray only "for all victims wherever they may be" and "so that Israelis and Palestinians can soon find the paths of peace and security and build together, through dialogue, a better future for future generations".

According to the Muslim organization, "any development around the Israeli-Palestinian conflict and any attempt to highlight the responsibilities of the one and the other, besides the fact that they have no place in a solemn moment of prayer, risk being a source of misunderstanding and controversy". It says it is convinced that the imams "as living forces of the Nation and within the framework of the mission that is theirs, will know how to find words of appeasement" in a period "where the forces of chaos and division are at work".

On Saturday, Hamas launched the "Al-Aqsa Deluge" operation from Gaza against Israel before 6:30 a.m. (3:30 a.m. GMT). In total, more than "5,000 rockets" were fired. After five days of intense fighting, the toll continues to rise. On the Israeli side, more than 1,200 people have been killed since the start of the offensive, according to the army spokesman. On the Palestinian side, local authorities report more than 900 dead. For the CFCM, "the solution to this conflict that has lasted too long can only be political and in dialogue".