The US ambassador to France was summoned to the Foreign Ministry on Monday after criticism deemed unacceptable by Paris of the "lack of sufficient action" against the anti-Semitism of President Emmanuel Macron, whose intention to recognize a Palestinian state has angered Israel and the United States.

In a letter addressed to the head of state, Charles Kushner, father of Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, who has been in office in France for several weeks, expressed "his deep concern at the surge in anti-Semitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by (his) government to combat it", echoing recent criticism from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

These accusations are "unacceptable" and violate the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of a state, according to the spokesperson for the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who "firmly refutes" them.

The US State Department said it "supported the remarks" made by its ambassador. "Ambassador Kushner is the representative of the United States government in France and does an outstanding job advancing our national interests in this role," his deputy spokesman, Tommy Pigott, said in a statement sent to AFP.

Contacted on Monday afternoon, neither the Quai d'Orsay nor the American embassy immediately confirmed whether the diplomat had been received.

The summons of an American ambassador to the Quai d'Orsay is a rare but not unprecedented event.

In October 2013, the Washington representative was summoned following Edward Snowden's revelations that the NSA had massively intercepted communications in France. In June 2015, his successor, Jane Hartley, also had to explain WikiLeaks documents attesting to the NSA's tapping of the calls of three French presidents (Chirac, Sarkozy, Hollande).

The American diplomat's criticism comes just days after Benjamin Netanyahu launched a violent attack on the French president, whom he accused of "fueling the anti-Semitic fire" by calling for international recognition of the State of Palestine.

An analysis that is "erroneous, abject and (which) will not remain unanswered," the French presidency had already replied.

In his letter, the American ambassador echoes Mr. Netanyahu's argument.

- Twice as many acts as in 2023 -

"Statements that vilify Israel and gestures in recognition of a Palestinian state encourage extremists, foment violence, and endanger Jewishness in France," said Mr. Kushner.

According to the ambassador, "not a day goes by in France without Jews being attacked in the streets, synagogues and schools being damaged, and businesses belonging to Jews being vandalized."

Anti-Semitic acts have been on the rise in France since October 7, 2023, the date of the unprecedented attacks by Hamas against Israel and the outbreak of the war in Gaza.

Between January and June 2025, 646 anti-Semitic acts were recorded in France, a 27% decrease compared to the first half of 2024, according to figures released Monday by the Ministry of the Interior. However, this figure represents more than double the 304 acts recorded between January and June 2023.

Anti-Semitism has reached "intolerable" levels, French Minister for the Fight against Discrimination Aurore Bergé acknowledged on Monday.

But, "the French government's fight against anti-Semitism is unambiguous," she assured. "The issue is too serious (...) to be taken to task in diplomatic matters," she said.

An opinion shared by Patrick Klugman, lawyer for several French victims of October 7 and representative of the Yad Vashem Memorial in France.

"Whatever France's sometimes questionable positions regarding Israel, the public authorities are taking constant, undeniable and resolute action against anti-Semitism," he stated in a message to Charles Kushner published on X.

"For six years, no anti-Semitic murders have been committed in France, while the United States has unfortunately experienced several," he observed, calling on the ambassador to be a "useful relay" in "fighting online hatred."

"Help us convince the major platforms—all American—to no longer provide a space for anti-Semitic hatred and to no longer allow it to be exported beyond your borders," he urges.

At the end of July, Mr. Macron announced that France would recognize the State of Palestine at the UN General Assembly in September. Subsequently, more than a dozen Western countries, including Canada and Australia, called on other countries around the world to do the same.