"The minister cancelled his trip to Paris for the Eurosatory and his meetings with top French officials," his office said in a statement.
"Defence Minister Barak decided to stay in Israel until an announcement about the establishment of a team of experts to examine the events surrounding the flotilla," it said, referring to a deadly Israeli raid on a Gaza-bound fleet of aid ships.
The botched pre-dawn raid in international waters which took place on May 31 left nine Turkish activists dead and scores injured, provoking a diplomatic crisis for Israel which is facing mounting pressure to re-examine its blockade of the Gaza Strip and answers to the use of fake European passports to Kill senior Hamas official Mahmoud Mabhouh in Dubai earlier this year.
Eurosatory 2010, which runs from June 14-18, is an international defense and security exhibition taking place in Paris.
BREAKING NEWS: Ehud Barak staying out of France because of flotilla
June 14, 2010
Ynet News - 11 June 2010Defense Minister Ehud Barak unexpectedly announced Sunday morning that he will not be traveling to Paris for the international military exhibition, Eurosatory.
The Defense Ministry reported that Minister Barak decided to remain in Israel until the team of experts investigating the raid on the Gaza-bound flotilla is announced. Over the weekend, French activists who took part in the flotilla to the Gaza Strip announced that they intend to file a lawsuit against Barak both in France and in the International Criminal Court in The Hague. Three members of French parliament have joined the effort.
Barak was slated to leave Sunday morning for an official two-day visit to Paris, where he would inaugurate the Israeli booth at the international military exhibition and meet with defense and foreign ministers.
On Friday, political officials said that Barak had no intention of canceling his trip, and that the legal department of the Foreign Ministry along with others in the judicial system were taking action to provide him with adequate defense should the case indeed be filed. However, at the last minute, Barak did indeed decide to cancel.
Regarding his previous visit to Paris, Barak was harshly criticized by State Comptroller Micha Lindenstrauss regarding his delegation’s extravagant hotel expenses at the Paris Air Show in 2009.
Barak fears arrest in Paris ...
Dalal al Mughrabi and Barah ...
JPost/ here "... Barak was set to dedicate a new Israeli booth at the Eurosatory 2010 Air Salon in Paris, which opens this week. He was also slated to meet high-ranking French officials, including French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner.Pro-Palestinian activists had threatened to try to have charges brought in Europe against Barak and other Israeli officials under the principle of universal jurisdiction. That principle allows the prosecution of suspected war criminals in countries that have no direct connection with the events.
In addition, former navy commander and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) head Ami Ayalon called on Barak to "accept responsibility for the consequences of the decision to raid [last week's Gaza-bound] flotilla."
Speaking on Israel Radio, Ayalon said the government showed "poor decision making" and that "the blockade became the policy objective instead of the means to achieve the objective."
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River to Sea
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