| Submit your comments on this article |
| Israel-Palestine |
| France ready to join international force in Gaza |
| 2004-06-21 |
| France is prepared to take part in an "international presence" in the Gaza Strip following a planned Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian territory, French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier said Monday. "We have stated our availability to take part, at the appropriate moment, including through an international presence whose format remains to be determined", Barnier said, flanked by his Egyptian counterpart Ahmed Maher. Has Maher wiped the shoe prints off yet? "Europeans as a whole are ready to "We havenât worked out the exact amount of Egypt has offered to send up to 200 personnel to the Gaza Strip to train a 30,000-strong police force to maintain security in the territory during and after next yearâs promised Israeli pullout. "The Egyptian commitment is definitely strategic," said Barnier. "We will support Egyptâs role after an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza". "Cuz we sure donât want the Paleostinians putting the moves on our wimmin." After talks with Maher, Barnier met Egyptâs pointman on the Middle East, intelligence chief Omar Souleiman, before seeing Arab League Secretary General Amr Mussa in the afternoon. And much tea was sipped along with the ritual batting of eyelashes and flirtatious, yet knowing, smiles. |
| Posted by:Seafarious |
| #19 Former French PM, Rocard (Member, European Parliament) says founding of Israel, a "mistake." http://www.ipc.gov.ps/ipc_e/ipc_e-1/e_News/news2004/2004_06/112.html I post the entire article only because the Euro-financed IPC propaganda center, soon deadlinks their poison: Former French PM: Creation of Israel by Balfour Declaration a Historic Mistake GAZA, June 19, 2004 (IPC + Asharq Al-Awsat)-- The former French Prime Minister and current member of the European Parliament, Michel Rocard, blasted Israel as an "abnormal case in the world", describing its creation by the 1917-Balfour Declaration as a "historic mistake". Rocard, who is also a well-known member of the French Socialist Party, was delivering a lecture at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina on June 16, in which he said that the Balfour promise England gave to the Jews to create a national homeland for them in Palestine was a "mistake". He also described the Israeli state as a "unique and abnormal condition because it was created with a promise, and that millions of Jews gathered from all around the world, creating an entity that continues to pose a threat to its neighbors until today." Rocard also drew attention to the fact that Israel was also historically created on a racist basis, depending on armed conflict to set its borders. Rocard referred to the colonization of the Arab world, of which his country was involved in, as the main reason behind the current state of violence and conflict in the Middle East. However, Rocard warned that delaying a peace agreement between the Arab states and Israel would "greatly increase violence in the region," pointing out that the long-demanded reforms in the Arab states stemmed from the inside, not imposed by outside forces. "Peace must spring from a religious base ⦠all reforms can be made possible through the teachings of our divine religions. To pray to God is accepted, but violence is not,â concluded Rocard. |
| Posted by: Dog Bites Trolls 2004-06-22 12:39:15 AM |
| #18 I wouldn't trust the Frenchies any more than I can spell crossant. Somehow, someway, there's money in it for Chirac. Moreover, wouldn't it be nice if they deployed in Afganistan? |
| Posted by: Capt America 2004-06-21 11:34:38 PM |
| #17 I guess after the French government heard about so many Jews wanting to leave France, they decided to put their army where it could still be used against them. |
| Posted by: Robert Crawford 2004-06-21 10:51:17 PM |
| #16 Good idea. Give 'em a nice handy local pool of international hostages. Then we can all chuckle knowingly when they start bumping them off. |
| Posted by: mojo 2004-06-21 10:44:33 PM |
| #15 French troopers surrounded by heathen leftists....sounds like Dien Bien Phu redux to me...'cept this time the Frenchies are aiding the heathens... Legion Etrange in Dien Bien Phu, not regular Army. Don't think France will put them there. That said, I wouldn't put it past France to do what RVW suggests. Gets rid of the hard-cases from around Paris, sucks up to the Arabs and massages the French institutional anti-semitism. |
| Posted by: Pappy 2004-06-21 10:29:23 PM |
| #14 Will France be sensitive and recruit a brigade from the Muslim rings surrounding their cities? Those punks might be the hardest boys in France right now. |
| Posted by: RWV 2004-06-21 8:25:12 PM |
| #13 The French will only fire their weapons at Israeli's (unarmed Israelis citizens that is, not the IDF). If this crap goes through, wait and see. They will "protect" Arab squatters against "vigilante Jewish mobs." |
| Posted by: Laurence of the Rats 2004-06-21 8:23:42 PM |
| #12 Actually, Mr. D, if they're going to Gaza, they're probably going to end up working Either that, or the Paleos turn on the French. That should be a lot of fun. |
| Posted by: The Doctor 2004-06-21 8:22:19 PM |
| #11 Let's see....French troopers surrounded by heathen leftists....sounds like Dien Bien Phu redux to me...'cept this time the Frenchies are aiding the heathens... |
| Posted by: borgboy2001@yahoo.com 2004-06-21 8:21:44 PM |
| #10 LOL Pappy! |
| Posted by: Shipman 2004-06-21 7:42:56 PM |
| #9 The Israelis need help developing surrender techniques? |
| Posted by: Mr. Davis 2004-06-21 7:41:04 PM |
| #8 "'We have stated our availability to take part, at the appropriate moment, including through an international presence whose format remains to be determined', Barnier said..." Stirring words. That's practically right out of the Battle Hymn of the Republic. |
| Posted by: Matt 2004-06-21 7:37:54 PM |
| #7 Cry 'Havoc' and let slip the nuances of war... |
| Posted by: Pappy 2004-06-21 7:26:49 PM |
| #6 rkb's on the mark! The Paleos would be able to launch Qassams and Katyushas over the fence and the French would bear witness to the payback "atrocities" committed by that "shitty little country" |
| Posted by: Frank G 2004-06-21 7:16:42 PM |
| #5 What do they imagine they will be doing in Gaza? Protecting the poor Pals from the mean Israeli's? More likely protecing Pals from other Pals, and hiding when the shooting gets to bad. Gaza should be left alone. |
| Posted by: Yank 2004-06-21 7:16:33 PM |
| #4 pffft... the French will withdraw long before the Israeli's do. That's what French do, withdraw. |
| Posted by: B 2004-06-21 7:12:51 PM |
| #3 I suspect they're thinking more about restraining Israel than the Palestinians or the Egyptians. Arafat has been calling for years for an international force to protect him, which also protesting he is unable to restrain attacks on Israel from his territory. |
| Posted by: rkb 2004-06-21 7:07:39 PM |
| #2 ...and what will they do after the first French trooper gets bumped off? |
| Posted by: 11A5S 2004-06-21 7:05:27 PM |
| #1 Two questions for the French Forces: How will you get there and what will you do when (not if) the Paleos launch a rocket into Israel? A followup question: Who is going to pay for this deployment? EU? UN? NATO? Surely not the US! |
| Posted by: Cyber Sarge (VRWC CA Chapter) 2004-06-21 6:59:46 PM |