France bars Samaria head Dagan; Israel demands explanation

Israel's Foreign Ministry issued a sharp statement Wednesday after France barred Samaria Regional Council head Yossi Dagan from entering the country. "Israel views with severity France's decision to ban entry to a law-abiding Israeli elected official on clearly political and ideological grounds," the ministry said. "This is a completely unacceptable step, and Israel will demand explanations from the French government and will consider its steps accordingly."

According to a statement from the Samaria Regional Council, Dagan was detained last week at a Paris airport after arriving for a series of policy meetings with elected officials. French immigration authorities prevented his entry to the country because of his work advancing settlement in Judea and Samaria.

During passport control, Dagan was taken for extended questioning, during which an immigration officer presented documents barring him from the country. The officer explained, according to the council, that the decision stemmed from Dagan's position as head of the Samaria Regional Council, his work building 35 communities in Judea and Samaria, and his promotion of a return to Gush Katif.

When asked to give his response to the entry ban for the record, Dagan replied: "I am proud to be a Jew and a Zionist and to build the historic homeland of the Jewish people. Proud to be on the right side of history."

Czech support for Samaria residents

After being turned away from France, Dagan continued to Prague, where he held three days of meetings with members of the Czech government, Senate and parliament. During the meetings, several Czech officials expressed support for Dagan and Samaria residents.

Czech Senate deputy chairman Jiri Oberfalzer voiced support for Israel and Samaria residents during his meeting with Dagan. "We express solidarity with Israel, we understand this struggle, and we would like Western civilization to understand the true nature of this conflict and free itself from the false information that is being spread with great success in our part of Western culture," he said.

Samaria Regional Council head meets with Czech Senate deputy chairman (Photo: Samaria Regional Council)

Oberfalzer added a direct message to Samaria residents: "We send blessings to the residents of Samaria and strengthen their hands. We wish you success in guarding your land and your culture. And we are at your side, so that you can build your culture and your history, as you have already done in the past."

Ondrej Knotek, chairman of the Czech ruling party's faction in the European Parliament, also expressed support for Dagan and Samaria residents at the end of their meeting.

Background: French-Israeli tensions

The incident comes against a backdrop of tensions between Israel and France on various issues. Days ago, France accused Iran of being behind a major cyberattack on supermarket chains in France and other European countries. In addition, an internal French Foreign Ministry report claimed that social media accounts linked to Israeli actors spread "hostile information" about protests in France.

In recent weeks, Dagan has been leading an effort to build a European coalition against imposing sanctions on Judea and Samaria. At the same time, Dagan continues to advance the Reconnection Plan to establish 19 new communities in northern Samaria, in place of the four communities uprooted in the Disengagement.