French MP Suspended For Waving Palestinian Flag In Parliament

The French parliament suspended a left-wing lawmaker on Tuesday after he held up a Palestinian flag during a heated debate. Sebastien Delogu, the member of parliament from the southern city of Marseille, was suspended for 15 days. The incident also halted parliamentary proceedings for about an hour.

National Assembly President Yael Braun-Pivet halted the session and said that the incident is "not tolerable." The incident took place in the parliament as junior trade minister Franck Riester was answering a question about Gaza's situation, reported Reuters. Later, lawmakers voted to suspend Sebastien Delogu, who waved the flag in support of Palestinians amid Israeli military attack on Rafah. 

According to the United Nations Palestinian refugee agency (UNRWA), one million people in Rafah have been forced to flee over the past three weeks. At the same time, on Tuesday, Spain, Norway, and Ireland formally recognized a Palestinian state. This comes as part of a coordinated effort by the three Western European nations to add international pressure on Israel.