Hassan condemned the raids as “morally unacceptable” in a post on X. Still, she argued that armed action against an occupying power is permitted under international law, even by Hamas, despite its history of terror attacks and civilian bombings.
Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau called the comments “unacceptable” and said on X that he had reported them to prosecutors to be investigated as glorifying terrorism.
Hassan is also one of the few French politicians who does not support a two-state solution. Instead, she advocates a single, binational state including both Israelis and Palestinians that guarantees the right of Palestinians to return to homes they fled or were expelled from when Israel became a state in 1948.
Israel has long opposed the right of return, deeming it a threat to its identity as a Jewish state.
These controversies have helped make the MEP one of Europe’s most talked-about and closely watched politicians. She even has more Instagram followers than the far-right’s millennial leader, Jordan Bardella, or the 36-year-old centrist ex–prime minister, Gabriel Attal.
Following her ordeal, Hassan this week returned to Strasbourg for a plenary session of the European Parliament with her resolve to put Palestinian rights at the forefront of French and European politics firmer than ever. She plans to use her role as an MEP to push the EU to suspend its political and economic agreement with Israel, and instead to impose an arms embargo on the country.
While Hassan’s high profile may help her achieve these goals, she insists she would rather not live under constant media scrutiny.
“It’s something I can’t control, in both directions,” she said. “I’m neither a hero nor a monster. I just want to stay true to myself.”