France has summoned the new U.S. ambassador, Charles Kushner, after he publicly accused President Emmanuel Macron of failing to protect French Jews. In an open letter published 24 August in the Wall Street Journal, Kushner said antisemitism had “exploded” since Hamas’s 2023 attack and urged Paris to enforce hate-crime laws, secure Jewish institutions and halt moves that “legitimise Hamas.” The French foreign ministry called the remarks unacceptable and ordered Kushner to appear at the Quai d’Orsay on 25 August. Government spokesperson Aurore Bergé conceded that antisemitic incidents remain elevated but said France has taken “extremely firm” measures, adding that domestic policy is not an ambassador’s remit. Washington refused to retract the criticism. State Department spokesman Tommy Pigott told reporters the United States “stands by” Kushner’s assessment, while the Republican Jewish Coalition praised what it called a “bold and resolute stand” in defence of French Jews. The dispute coincides with a separate exchange between Paris and Jerusalem. In a letter released 26 August, Macron rejected Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s earlier claim that France was “fuelling antisemitism” through its push to recognise a Palestinian state. Macron said the accusation “offends the French nation,” insisted the fight against antisemitism must not be weaponised, and urged Netanyahu to end Israel’s “deadly headlong rush” in Gaza and the expansion of settlements in the West Bank.