JERUSALEM: Israel said on Thursday it would ban French hard-left presidential contender Jean-Luc Melenchon from visiting after he vowed that if he were elected, French vessels would accompany activists hoping to force aid into Gaza.

“Israel will respond firmly to those who seek to harm it and will not allow individuals who act against Israel and incite against its citizens to enter the country,” the Israeli foreign ministry said in a statement.

The announcement comes a day after France confirmed it had refused entry to the head of a body representing Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank.

Melenchon, a fierce critic of Israel, said in a speech Saturday that if he were elected, France would “act directly in support of the Palestinians” in both Gaza and the West Bank.

“French ships, like those of Italy and Spain, will escort, if necessary, the flotillas of citizens mobilized to affirm people’s rights,” he said.

Commenting on the decision to ban him, Melenchon said, “I regret that the Israeli government is pursuing me like this.”

“The ambassador here in Paris said that he would like anyone other than me elected. Well, so be it,” he told France Info radio.

But he said he was not “disappointed” by the Israeli order, explaining, “They’re banning me from entering territory I didn’t ask to enter.”

Israel said it would also refuse entry to Mathilde Panot, the parliamentary group chair of Melenchon’s France Unbowed party.

Israel has imposed a blockade on Gaza since Hamas took over in 2007 and has even more strictly controlled entry points since Hamas carried out the unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack against Israel, triggering a massive military campaign.

A series of flotillas have sought to break through the Israeli siege.

Some activists from one flotilla intercepted earlier this year alleged that Israeli authorities physically or sexually abused them in custody, charges denied by the Israeli government.

Israel earlier banned entry to a number of British left-wing lawmakers including Jeremy Corbyn, another outspoken critic, after London imposed sanctions on products from settlements.