Sarkozy in the Holy Land

This news article is from today's Jerusalem Post. I thought it interesting how Nicolas Sarkozy seems to be interjecting himself into the peace process in the Holy Land when France has basically had nothing to do with it for decades. Last week, it was Sarkozy that convinced President Bush that it would be right and fitting to pressure Israel into negotiating away the Shebaa Farms sector of the Golan Heights to Syria. Bush immediately dispatched Condaleeza Rice to Israel and Prime Minister Ehud Ohmert bit on the idea.

Take special note of Sarkozy's stance that Jerusalem should be shared....another word for divided....since it is a treasure to three faiths. Jerusalem has been under Jewish control since 1967 and that fact continues to drive the Arab world crazy, even though Israel has voluntarily ceded the Temple Mount to Islam.
Read away!
French President Nicolas Sarkozy and Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas signed an agreement on Tuesday to establish an industrial zone in the Bethlehem area to boost the Palestinian economy.

Abbas thanked Sarkozy for agreeing to fund the $21 million project, which is expected to provide thousands of jobs. Abbas also called on the European Union to play a more active role in solving the Israeli-Arab conflict.

The industrial zone will be built on a 530-dunam plot, PA officials said, expressing hope that the work would begin in the next few weeks. After the meeting with Abbas, Sarkozy and his entourage visited the Church of the Nativity.

Abbas, speaking at a press conference in the city, hailed the French president as a "true and brave" friend. He added that the Palestinians were relying on the EU for financial aid. Abbas said peace in the region depended on "removing the 60-year-old oppression" against the Palestinians. He called for dismantling Israel's security barrier in the West Bank and ending settlement there.

"Every Palestinian, be he or she a Muslim or Christian, should have the right to move around freely and to have free access to holy sites," Abbas said. "We hope to see the principles of the French Revolution, namely justice and friendship, implemented in Palestine."

Sarkozy described Abbas as a man of peace "whom we trust and support." He said his country's policy was to talk to men and women of peace and not terrorists. He added that during his talks with Israeli leaders, he had urged them to halt the policy of settlement construction.

Sarkozy also called on Israelis and Palestinians to "share" Jerusalem.

"It's a holy city for three faiths - Jews, Christians and Muslims," he said. "Can Jerusalem be for one party and not the other? I don't think so."

Earlier, Sarkozy dispatched his interior minister, Michele Alliot-Marie, to Ramallah to lay a wreath of flowers at the tomb of former PLO leader Yasser Arafat.