Post-WWII leader Charles de Gaulle famously rallied France to the Palestinian people following the 1967 war, with Paris engaging with the Palestinian Liberation Organization for decades, even as terror attacks were committed in the group’s name on French soil.

Experts say President Emmanuel Macron’s decision could pressure other European countries to follow and may lead Hamas to take a harder line in ceasefire talks.

The announcement sets France apart from the United States and most of its close allies, and could cause friction with President Trump.

BRUSSELS — France’s highest court is ruling Friday on whether it can strip the head of state immunity of Bashar Assad, the former leader of Syria now in exile in Russia, because of the brutality of the evidence in accusations against him collected by Syrian activists and European prosecutors.

France's highest court ruled on Friday that an arrest warrant for former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad was invalid as it was issued when he was still in office, but said a new warrant can now be issued as he is no longer a sitting head of state.

France's Cour de Cassation, the country's highest court, ruled on Friday that a warrant issued for former Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad was invalid. (Reporting by Benoit Van Overstraeten, Charlotte Van Campenhout,