Israel's Ministry of Defence has condemned the erection of black partition walls around its defence industry pavilions at the Paris Air Show, calling the move "outrageous and unprecedented" and demanding an immediate reversal by French authorities and event organisers.

The walls appeared overnight ahead of the air show's opening Monday, visually isolating Israeli booths from dozens of other international exhibitors. Israeli officials say the move followed a last-minute demand from organisers to remove offensive weapons systems from display — a request they rejected.

"The French are hiding behind supposedly political considerations to exclude Israeli offensive weapons from an international exhibition — weapons that compete with French industries," the ministry said in a statement Monday, calling the action "ugly and improper".