by John Irish
Paris (Reuters) – France on Thursday accused Israel of undermining bilateral relations after two gendarmes with diplomatic status were briefly arrested by Israeli security forces in the French national domain of Eléona, located on the Mont des Olive trees in Jerusalem.
The incident occurred while the French Minister of Foreign Affairs, Jean-Noël Barrot, was to visit this French-administered compound.
According to a diplomatic source, Israeli security forces had been asked not to enter the site before the French minister's visit.
However, they entered the enclosure and Jean-Noël Barrot refused to enter as long as they were there.
“I am not going to enter the Eléona area today because the Israeli security forces entered it in an armed manner without first obtaining authorization from France and without agreeing to leave,” said Jean -Noël Barrot in front of journalists.
Two French gendarmes responsible for securing the Pater Noster church site were briefly arrested, two diplomatic sources said, adding that the Israelis knew they were attached to the consulate and that they benefited from diplomatic status.
The Israeli Foreign Ministry said in a statement that a quarrel broke out between Israeli security forces and the two French gendarmes, and that the latter were released as soon as they identified themselves.
“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”, said Jean-Noël Barrot.
Israeli diplomacy affirmed that each visit by a foreign official was accompanied by Israeli security personnel and that this point had been “clarified in advance with the French embassy in Israel.”
A French diplomatic source said Israeli authorities were spreading “false accusations” and that the incident was not yet closed.
The Israeli ambassador in Paris will be summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the coming days, the Quai d'Orsay said in a statement.
(With Tassilo Hummel, Piotr Lipinski and Emily Rose; French version Camille Raynaud)
