Haaretz: Hollande Asked Netanyahu Not to Attend Paris Memorial March

Local Editor

France: anti-terrorism march

Zionist Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu insisted on attending Sunday's anti-terrorism march in Paris despite being asked by French President Francois Hollande not to do so, Zionist daily Haaretz reported Monday.

"Hollande conveyed a message to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over the weekend asking him not to come to Paris to take part in the march against terror on Sunday," Haaretz quoted a Zionist source as saying.

The French president's "national security adviser, Jacques Audibert, contacted his Zionist counterpart, Yossi Cohen, and said that Hollande would prefer that Netanyahu not attend," Haaretz quoted the source as saying.

The French official argued that Hollande wanted the event to focus on demonstrating solidarity with France, and to avoid anything that might divert attention to other issues, the source said.

According to the paper, the Zionist premier acquiesced to the French request, but changed his mind later after learning that Zionist Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and Economy Minister Naftali Bennett had intended to travel to Paris.

"When Cohen informed Audibert that Netanyahu would be attending the event after all, Audibert angrily told Cohen that the prime minister’s conduct would have an adverse effect on ties between the two countries as long as Hollande was president of France and Netanyahu was prime minister of Israel," Haaretz quoted the source as saying.

The French presidency had to invite Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas although the latter announced that he would not be traveling to Paris, the report said.

According to Haaretz, Hollande was so angry at Netanyahu that it was obvious during a ceremony held Sunday evening following the march at the Grand Synagogue in Paris.

"Hollande sat through most of the ceremony, but when Netanyahu's turn at the podium arrived, the French president got up from his seat and made an early exit," the Zionist paper said.

Chief Palestinian negotiator Saeb Erekat, for his part, said that Hollande had "contacted Abbas and asked him to attend the anti-terrorism march."

More than 55 world leaders marched in Paris Sunday with hundreds of thousands of people in a symbolic unity march to pay tribute to victims of the recent deadly attacks that killed a total of 17 people in France.