A tense baptism for the French Minister of Foreign Affairs. During his first trip to Israel, Jean-Noël Barrot was confronted with a diplomatic incident which risks casting a chill on Franco-Israeli relations. Gendarmes arrested, Israeli police armed, anger from Paris, ambassador summoned… A look back at this episode which happened in Jerusalem this Thursday.
Israeli soldiers on a site managed by France
During Jean-Noël Barrot's official visit to Jerusalem, Israeli police entered “armed” and “without authorization” into Eléona, a pilgrimage site managed by France. A situation described as “unacceptable” by the head of diplomacy who then refused to set foot there.
“I'm not going in […] today, because Israeli security forces entered there in an armed manner, without first obtaining authorization from France and without agreeing to leave,” he told the press. “This attack on the integrity of an area placed under the responsibility of France is likely to weaken the links that I had come to cultivate with Israel, at a time when we all need to advance the region on the path to peace,” he further underlined.
French gendarmes grounded and taken on board
During virulent exchanges, Israeli police surrounded two French gendarmes, grabbing one of them by force and putting him on the ground before loading him into a police car. The official, who had identified himself, yelled several times, “Don’t touch me!” », According to the AFP journalist.
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The two gendarmes “under diplomatic status” were then released “after intervention by the minister”, specifies the Quai d'Orsay in a press release. It was not specified why Israeli police entered the site. France, which “condemns” these “unacceptable actions”, announced that it would summon the Israeli ambassador to Paris. “France condemns them with all the more vigor as they intervene in a context where it is doing everything possible to work to de-escalate violence in the region,” adds the ministry.
What is Eleona?
The Eleona, within which there is a Benedictine monastery, is located on the Mount of Olives in East Jerusalem, the Palestinian part of the city occupied and annexed by Israel since 1967. Built on the so-called Pater cave, where Christ is said to have taught the Pater to his disciples, it is one of the four French national domains in and near Jerusalem, with the Tomb of the Kings, the Basilica of Saint Anne and the ancient crusader commandery of Abu Gosh with their Romanesque churches.
Our file on the conflict in the Middle East
“The domain of Eléona […] is an area which has not only belonged to France for more than 150 years, but which France ensures the security and maintenance with enormous care, affirmed the minister. The integrity of the four areas for which France is responsible here in Jerusalem must be respected. »
Recurring incidents
On January 22, 2020, the visit of French President Emmanuel Macron was also marked by a stampede in front of the Sainte-Anne basilica. The president said in English to an Israeli police officer, “I don't like what you did in front of me.”
The most famous incident remains that of 1996, when President Jacques Chirac also lost his temper against Israeli soldiers who were surrounding him too closely, saying “Do you want me to go back to my plane? » (“Do you want me to get back on board my plane?”), before demanding that the soldiers leave the Sainte-Anne area.
