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Paris -

Activists from the “Stop Arming Israel” organization participated in a protest on Wednesday morning in front of the headquarters of the “Dassault Aviation” company, which specializes in manufacturing military aircraft.

As part of its activities to denounce French companies that arm Israel, the organization chose this day because it marks “the sad anniversary of the fourth month of Israeli aggression and genocidal war against the defenseless Palestinian people.”

Al Jazeera Net tried to obtain statements from an official in the French company, but they refused to comment on what they described as “false allegations.”

Activists from the "Stop Arming Israel" organization demonstrate in front of the headquarters of a French company specializing in manufacturing military aircraft (Al Jazeera)

Denounce military support

Although their number did not exceed 30, the activists were able to cause obvious concern among the company's security personnel, to the point that management ordered its employees to enter through the back door.

While some activists began distributing leaflets to passers-by and employees before the start of working hours, others chanted the need to stop arming Israel and denounce the ongoing genocide against Palestinian civilians.

Emmanuel, a French teacher, said that Dassault is considered a "historic partner of Israel in the field of weapons, intelligence and technology."

She indicated in her interview with Al Jazeera Net that France owns a huge number of weapons factories, especially in the Ile-de-France region, and "therefore we call for more protests in front of the factories, to put pressure on the government that is still indifferent to what is happening."

Since last October 16, several French unions and organizations supporting the Palestinian cause have launched a global call with clear slogans demanding an end to arming and financing the Israeli occupation to end what they described as genocide.

Emmanuel - who participated today with members of the "Stop Arming Israel" organization in the demonstration - believes that her country is continuing to sell weapons, technologies and spare parts "because this generates a lot of money for manufacturers, and sellers of death benefit from the increasing geopolitical risks."

Although France confirms that it does not sell weapons, it provides parts that are called “dual use,” meaning that they can be used for civilian and military purposes as well, which the French activist describes as “hypocrisy and lies.”

The French company "Dassault Aviation" has its headquarters in Israel (Al Jazeera)

Historic cooperation

Israel is one of Dassault Aviation's first customers, purchasing 24 MC-450 Auragen aircraft in 1954.

At the request of the French government in 1962, the missile department at Dassault Saint-Cloud designed the MC-620 Jericho ballistic missile for the occupation army.

Mirage 3 aircraft participated for the first time in combat in the ranks of the Israeli Air Force during the Six-Day War in June 1967, flying more than 12 sorties daily.

Dassault also signed a contract with the Israeli startup Cognata, which is currently working on developing autonomous military vehicle technologies for the Israeli army.

French-Israeli cooperation is not limited to the military field only, as there are other partnerships in the field of information technology as well. For example, the programs developed by Dassault System are used by many Israeli arms manufacturing companies, including the Israeli Aerospace Industries (IAI). ) and "Elbit Systems" and "Rafael".

The French company does not deny establishing its headquarters in Israel, as it published the address on its website, and it is located in Raanana, a city built on the ruins of the Palestinian village of Tubsr, displaced in the 1948 war (Nakba).

The number of demonstrators in front of the French company's headquarters did not exceed 30 people, but they caused confusion for it (Al Jazeera)

Huge investments

The French group, which has specialized in 3D modeling software for 40 years, witnessed an increase in its net profits by 4% in the first half of last year, equivalent to 739.4 million euros, driven by an increase in its sales by 8%, or 2.88 billion euros, according to a statement published by the company in Last July.

According to the report on French arms exports for the year 2023 - which was also presented to Parliament last July - France sold military equipment worth 25.6 million euros to Israel in 2022, and about 208 million euros over 10 years, but these financial amounts do not provide details. And weapons components produced and marketed by France.

Laurent Dassault, head of Dassault Group investments, claims that he invests millions in Israel, especially through the Catalyst investment fund of former Israeli minister Yair Shamir.

“I am Dassault who returned to Israel, the family member who goes there to invest with the support of the most pro-Israel group,” he said in a 2017 newspaper interview.

Today, Dassault continues to invest and cooperate with Israeli companies, led by Elbit Systems, which cooperates with the French company to manufacture Falcon aircraft, as well as its latest Falcon 8 aircraft, which will enter service as of 2025, to carry out strategic intelligence missions with the army. French.

Source: Al Jazeera