France to summon US ambassador over comments on far-right activist’s death

Al Jazeera · Feb 22, 2026 · Collected from RSS

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Top French diplomat says his government rejects any attempt to use Quentin Deranque’s death ‘for political purposes’.By AFP and APPublished On 22 Feb 2026French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot says US Ambassador Charles Kushner will be summoned over the US embassy’s recent comments on the killing of a far-right French activist this month in the southeastern city of Lyon.“We are going to summon the United States ambassador to France since the US embassy in France commented on this tragedy, … which concerns the national community,” Barrot told the French newspaper Le Monde and public broadcasters France Inter and France Info on Sunday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3‘We are scapegoats’: The rise of anti-migrant anger in Polandlist 2 of 3Man Utd co-owner Ratcliffe’s anti-immigrant rhetoric sparks outragelist 3 of 3Migrants are not responsible for the UK’s healthcare crisisend of list“We reject any attempt to use this tragedy … for political purposes,” he added.The Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs did not say when Kushner, the father of Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner, would be summoned.The killing of Quentin Deranque, 23, has highlighted a climate of political tensions before next year’s presidential election.President Emmanuel Macron, who is not eligible to run due to term limits, called for calm on Saturday as about 3,000 people joined a march in Lyon organised by far-right groups to pay tribute to Deranque.Deranque died from head injuries when he was beaten on the sidelines of a February 12 demonstration against an appearance by a politician from the left-wing France Unbowed (LFI) party in Lyon.His killing has provoked international reactions with US President Donald Trump’s right-wing administration on Friday denouncing what it called “terrorism” in France.On Friday, Sarah Rogers, the US Department of State’s undersecretary for public diplomacy, said Deranque’s killing showed “why we treat political violence – terrorism – so harshly”.“Once you decide to kill people for their opinions instead of persuade them, you’ve opted out of civilization,” she wrote on X.The State Department’s bureau of counterterrorism separately posted: “Violent radical leftism is on the rise and its role in Quentin Deranque’s death demonstrates the threat it poses to public safety”, a post shared in French by the US embassy account.Feud with ItalyDeranque’s killing has also caused a diplomatic feud between France and Italy, whose right-wing prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, has warm ties with Trump.She called the killing of Deranque “a wound for all of Europe”, prompting Macron to criticise her for speaking out on French domestic affairs.Six men suspected of involvement in the fatal assault have been charged over the killing while a parliamentary assistant to a far-left MP has also been charged with complicity.Protesters hold a banner reading, “Justice for Quentin,” during a march in tribute to the far-right activist [AFP]