Editorial Note: The following news reports are summaries from original sources. They may also include corrections of Arabic names and political terminology. Comments are in parentheses.

French Hypocrisy:

Ignoring the Israeli Nuclear Arsenal, Hollande Talks Tough on Iran During Israel Visit

November 17, 2013

Editor's Note:

It seems that hypocrisy has become a major characteristic politicians must have in order for them to be able to maintain their jobs in service of their Israeli masters.

This is the French President, Francois Hollande, talking tough on Iran because it has a nuclear program, without having any nuclear weapons whatsoever. At the same time, he ignores the fact that Israel is the only state in the Middle East that possesses nuclear weapons!

So, it's clear that he and his Zionist masters want to maintain the Israeli nuclear hegemony in the region, by denying Arabs and Muslims any right to defend themselves against the Zionist nuclear threat.

Hollande talks tough on Iran during Israel visit

By FRANCE 24 (video) FRANCE 24 (text)  

November 17, 2013 

French President François Hollande began on Sunday his three-day state visit in Israel by taking a tough stand on Iran’s uranium enrichment programme, insisting that France would not accept the proliferation of nuclear arms.

"France will not tolerate nuclear proliferation," he said in a speech on the red carpet shortly after landing at Ben Gurion airport near Tel Aviv. "As long as we are not certain that Iran has decided to give up on nuclear weapons, we will continue with all our demands and with sanctions."

France’s tough stance has been praised by Israeli officials, who view Iran’s nuclear programme as a direct threat. FRANCE 24’s international affairs editor Armen Georgian pointed out that the Benjamin Netanyahu’s Likud party in Israel and the Republican party in the US are unusual allies for France. “It would have been unthinkable 10 or 12 years ago when Jacques Chirac was in power”, argued Georgian.

Talks in deadlock

Hollande’s visit to Israel is set to be dominated by the issue of Iran and its disputed nuclear programme. Hollande’s Foreign Minister Laurent Fabius, who was also present at the talks with Iran that ended in deadlock last weekend, is also travelling in Israel.

According to diplomatic sources, Western powers and Tehran were close to a deal in Geneva, but Iran backed off because it was unhappy with some of the wording in the text.

According to some reports, this was due to reservations expressed by the France and which were subsequently adopted by other powers. The talks are due to resume in Geneva next week.

FRANCE 24's Jerusalem correspondent Gallagher Fenwick said Israel had taken France's position in the negotiations "very seriously".

"This is the big issue in Israel right now," he said. "The path is clear for them to roll out the red carpet."

Talks with Palestinians The other main issues during the trip are the stalled Middle East peace process and stronger trade ties with Israel.

The French leader, apart from holding talks with Netanyahu and Israeli President Shimon Peres, will also go to Ramallah for discussions with Palestinian Authority President Mahmud Abbas.

French sources said he would encourage both sides to make the necessary compromises and efforts to overcome the obstacles to peace talks.

Hollande will make a series of highly symbolic gestures during his trip, where he will place a wreath at the grave of Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern political Zionism, and place a stone at the grave of slain prime minister Yitzhak Rabin and his wife Leah.

On Monday, Hollande will meet French priests in the Church of Saint Anne in Jerusalem's Old City, a building which the Ottomans donated to France in 1856.

He will also visit the grave of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat, who died in 2004 in France in a hospital and whose remains were recently found to contain signs of polonium poisoning.

(FRANCE 24 with wires)