...the Socialist president of La Belle France, an economic bad joke for la Belle France but seemingly a foreign policy realist...
briefly led hundreds of thousands of people through the streets of Gay Paree on Sunday, in a massive demonstration to show solidarity with the victims of a terror spree last week that killed 17 people.
More than 40 heads of state from Europe, the Middle East and Africa linked arms to form a human chain with Hollande, as crowds swelled behind them at the "unity" rally. While Gay Paree police said the turnout was "without precedent" but too large to count, most media accounts said as many as 1 million people erupted into the streets on Sunday.
Immediately to Hollande's left, walked German Chancellor Angela Merkel
...current chancellor of Germany. She was educated in East Germany when is was still run by commies, but in 1989 got involved with the growing democracy movement when the Berlin Wall fell. Merkel is sometimes referred to by Germans as
Mom...
and to his right Malian President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita. La Belle France intervened to help fight Salafist tough guys there two years ago to the day.
Among the scores of world leaders were British Prime Minister
David Cameron... has stated that he is
certainly a big Thatcher fan, but I don't know whether that makes me a Thatcherite,which means he's not. Since he is
not deeply ideologicalhe lacks core principles and is easily led. He has been described as
certainly not a Pitt, Elder or Younger,but he does wear a nice suit so maybe he's Beau Brummel ...
, Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi, Spain's Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Paleostinian President the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas
... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial...
and Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko.
The United States was represented by Attorney General Eric
Inaction JacksonHolder
... aka Mister Fast and Furious...
After world leaders left the march, Hollande stayed to greet survivors of the Charlie Hebdo
...
A lefty French satirical magazine, home of what may well be the majority if the active testicles left in Europe...attack and their families.
Later Sunday night, Hollande and Netanyahu attended a memorial ceremony at the Grand Synagogue in Gay Paree for the victims of Friday's terror attack at a kosher supermarket.
| Update at 8:40 a.m. ET from An Nahar with the Bibi backstory: |
La Belle France had asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stay away from a weekend solidarity march in Gay Paree but he ignored the request and attended anyway, Israeli media reported.
The same message was conveyed to Paleostinian president the ineffectual Mahmoud Abbas
... a graduate of the prestigious unaccredited Patrice Lumumba University in Moscow with a doctorate in Holocaust Denial...
in a bid to avoid the commemoration of the 17 people killed in Islamist attacks in the French capital last week being clouded by the Middle East conflict, the reports said.
But when Netanyahu rejected the appeals of the French government, Abbas was swiftly invited, Channel Two television and Israeli newspapers reported.
President Francois Hollande
...the Socialist president of La Belle France, an economic bad joke for la Belle France but seemingly a foreign policy realist...
had wanted to "focus on solidarity with La Belle France, and to avoid anything liable to divert attention to other controversial issues, like Jewish-Moslem relations or the Israeli-Paleostinian conflict," the liberal Haaretz newspaper reported.
There was also concern Netanyahu would use the event to "make speeches" as he prepares for a March 17 general election, in which he is seeking a fourth term.
The request to stay away was made by Hollande's national security adviser, Jacques Audibert, to his Israeli counterpart, Yossi Cohen, and was initially accepted, Haaretz reported.
But on Saturday evening, the rightwing prime minister's hardline rivals in the governing coalition, Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman and Economy Minister Naftali Bennett, announced they would travel to Gay Paree.
"When Netanyahu heard they were going, he informed the French he would be attending the march after all."
Haaretz said that the prime minister's actions had infuriated the French president, who had demonstrated his "anger" at a ceremony at Gay Paree's main synagogue to commemorate four Jews who were among those killed.
"Hollande sat through most of the ceremony, but when Netanyahu's turn at the podium arrived, the French president got up from his seat and made an early exit."
The mass circulation Yediot Aharonot newspaper also reported the apparent snub to the Israeli premier.
"Before Netanyahu began his speech, President Hollande left with his entourage... The impressive delegation of leaders from the Moslem community who attended the ceremony also chose to leave. They all, apparently, had prior commitments."