French ships may escort pro-Palestinian civilian flotillas, Mélenchon says

France's far-left presidential contender Jean-Luc Mélenchon has said that French ships will, if necessary, escort flotillas of citizens as he vowed "direct action" to come to the aid of the Palestinians, both against the genocide in Gaza and against the gradual annexation of the West Bank.

"French ships will, if necessary, escort flotillas of citizens mobilising to assert their rights," Mélenchon wrote on X.

"We do not accept the gradual annexation of the West Bank, southern Lebanon or the Golan Heights," he added.

Melenchon said "we will take concrete steps" to mobilise against the "extension of these atrocities" to besieged Christian communities being persecuted in Palestine and Lebanon.