France's PM cancels Israel trip under cloud of speculation

France's Prime Minister Edouard Philippe has cancelled a planned trip to Israel early next month, citing "domestic agenda" issues, his office said on Wednesday.

Others have speculated over the real reason for the cancellation, including France's official condemnation of the killing of over 60 Palestinians by Israeli sniper fire, as they demonstrated at the Gaza border on 14 May.

Philippe had been expected to visit Jerusalem on 1 June to promote the Israeli-French 'Season of Culture', which his Israeli counterpart Binyamin Netanyahu was also due to attend.

Philippe was also planning a trip to Tel Aviv and the West Bank city of Ramallah.

Aides to Philippe pointed to looming strikes in France at the beginning of June and the government's packed reform agenda, as well as his decision to cancel a trip to Mali in April.

But the decision comes at a particularly tense time in the region, alongside the mass killings of Palestinians in Gaza and the relocation of the US embassy to Jerusalem, French President Emmanuel Macron is also scrambling to salvage the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran after US President Donald Trump pulled out of the accord.

Netanyahu staunchly opposes the international agreement, which curbs Iran's nuclear programme in return for sanctions relief. The Israeli premier has offered vociferous support to Trump's withdrawal, which will likely to have angered France and its European allies.

Further complicating Philippe's visit to the region is the ailing health of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, who is 83.

Abbas was admitted to hospital at the weekend with pneumonia. There is no information yet on when he might be discharged, however his health is the subject of regular speculation, with no clear successor identified.

Phillipe's nephew was one of three French tourists critically injured in a stabbing carried out by a group of Israelis at the Red Sea resort of Eilat in January.

The attack happened in the wake of French President Macron and Phillipe's official refusal to side with the US and recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

It has not been confirmed whether this was the motivation behind the stabbing.

Earlier this month, iconic French film director Jean-Luc Godard signed a petition calling for a boycott of the Season of Culture festival.

The petition stated that bilateral cooperation was unacceptable "in a context where international law in the Palestinian territories has never been so violated".

French newspaper Le Figaro reported that the French premier was not planning another trip to Israel in the near future.

Agencies contributed to this report.