France drops bid to revoke terrorists’ citizenship
Facing opposition, President Hollande scraps plan for constitutional reform in aftermath of Paris attacks
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PARIS — French President Francois Hollande said Wednesday he was scrapping his plan for constitutional reforms in the wake of the November 13 attacks on Paris, including a measure to strip convicted terrorists with dual nationality of their French citizenship.
Hollande announced in a televised statement he was “closing the constitutional debate” on the reforms after the lower house, the National Assembly, and opposition-dominated Senate failed to agree on the text.
Hollande proposed the reforms after Islamic State group suicide bombers and gunmen killed 130 people across Paris in a wave of coordinated attacks on November 13, 2015.
“A compromise appears out of reach on the stripping of terrorists’ nationality,” Hollande said.
“I also note that a section of the opposition is hostile to any constitutional revision. I deeply regret this attitude.”
Hollande pledged that despite dropping the reform plans, he would not “deviate from the commitments I have taken… to ensure the security of our country.”
The proposal to revoke the citizenship of convicted terrorists had prompted a heated political dispute in France, with the far right applauding the move while some on the left expressed indignation at what they called a divisive measure.
Opponents of the measure say it would create two classes of citizens — dual nationals who could lose their French citizenship and French citizens who cannot — in opposition to the principle of equality set out in France’s constitution.
The Times of Israel Community.