Sarkozy wants Israel to share Jerusalem with Palestinians

             

French president Nicolas Sarkozy arrived in Israel on Monday for a three-day visit which began with an address to the country's parliament, the Knesset. Sarkozy started his speech by expounding on his heartfelt love for Israel, and insisting that he and his government would always remain close friends of Israel. Sarkozy also said that a nuclear Iran was "intolerable" and added: "Israel must know it is not alone in the battle against Iran's nuclear ambitions." Responding to Iranian president Mahmud Ahmadinejad's previous threats to wipe Israel off the map, the French leader warned that "anyone trying to destroy Israel will find France blocking the way."

Speaking about the Middle East peace process, the French president said Jerusalem should become the capital of both Israel and the Palestinian State. Sarkozy also offered to send French troops to the region if requested. He said peace with the Palestinians was possible if Israel stopped its settlement activity, lifted the checkpoints in the West Bank, and ended a blockade of the Gaza Strip. "Create the conditions for movement," Sarkozy told parliamentarians, urging them to back a proposal for settlers to leave the West Bank in return for compensation and re-housing in Israel.

Sarkozy also spoke of Israel's significance to the Jewish people. "This is the only place in the world where everyone is certain that Jews will never be forced to wear a yellow patch." The French president said: "Jews across the world feel bound to their homeland. The fate of every Jew is tied to the fate of all other Jews. The fact that there is such a successful Jewish state in the world constitutes a source of honor and pride for each and every one of them. Because in Israel, Judaism is not defined out of the attitude towards anti-Semitism. Because for every Jew, this is the only place in the world where everyone is certain that Jews will never be forced to wear a yellow patch, where Jews will not be banned from travelling on buses, visiting the cinema and theatre and holding certain roles, and will not be forced to live in neighborhoods for Jews only or visit restaurants, stores and schools for Jews only." Sarkozy concluded his speech by saying, "France will not abandon you on the road. France admires you. Long live France, long live Israel."

Earlier on Monday, president Sarkozy and his wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, accompanied by Israel's president Shimon Peres and Auschwitz survivor, and former French health, minister Simone Veil.