Tensions at Montpellier City Council over twinning with Tiberias in Israel

Montpellier’s city council recently witnessed heated discussions about the future of the city’s twinning relationship with Tiberias, an Israeli city. The debate was sparked by a proposal from Mupes to suspend this relationship, which prompted mixed reactions from the municipal majority. Ultimately, an alternative proposal for peace in the Middle East was unanimously adopted.

A historic twinning relationship facing crisis

The twinning between Montpellier and Tiberias began 42 years ago, a partnership that once seemed solid but is now facing challenges. The last notable visit was two years ago, when the mayor of Tiberias traveled to Montpellier for Jerusalem Day. However, tensions exacerbated by the municipal majority’s denunciation of “war crimes committed in Gaza” have made any immediate future contact unlikely. The Controversial Proposal from Mupes Alenka Doulain, on behalf of Mupes, presented a motion in favor of suspending the twinning, asserting that “neutrality becomes complicity” in the face of the suffering of the Palestinian people. Treated by the United Nations as a genocide, this massacre, she said, required a clear response from the municipality. However, this motion received only six votes in favor. The Position of the Municipal Majority and a New Call for Peace Michaël Delafosse, Mayor of Montpellier, firmly opposed the suspension of relations with Tiberias. According to him, “people are not their leaders.” He emphasized the importance of maintaining channels of dialogue, even with countries where the political situation is conflictual, citing Montpellier’s current collaborations with cities such as Chengdu and Louisville. Following the rejection of the Mupes proposal, Julie Frêche

read a motion calling for “peace and respect for international law in the Middle East,” condemning all forms of violence against civilians, both on the Israeli and Palestinian sides. This approach managed to garner unanimous support.

Reactions and Criticism The discussions did not calm down, however.Coralie Mantion

criticized the majority motion, claiming it drew an awkward parallel between a terrorist attack and Israel’s alleged ethnic cleansing. She denounced the absence of the terms Islamophobia and genocide in the debate, which she considered essential.

Faced with the strong reactions, the mayor also expressed concern about the threat this conflict posed to social cohesion within the city, reiterating his support for the victims of provocative acts, as illustrated by the controversy surrounding a controversial BDS banner (see the linked article for more information:A controversial banner in Montpellier

). Future Actions and Individual Initiatives Dissatisfied with the outcome of the vote, Alenka Doulain launched an online petition on qomon.org. The goal of this petition is to gather 8,500 signatures

from Montpellier residents to support the suspension of the twinning with Tiberias. This initiative shows that tensions surrounding this issue are far from resolved and that the debate could continue in Montpellier.