JTA: The Global News Service of the Jewish People

Close

Share

Sarkozy: No more Hamas talks

After holding informal talks with Hamas, France is now shunning the group, Nicolas Sarkozy said.

The French president told visiting Israeli Foreign Minister Tzipi Livni that Paris will have no more contact with Hamas, Israel Radio reported Monday.

The pledge came a week after French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner admitted that one of his former diplomats had met Hamas leaders to discuss options for reconciliation with rival Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas.

Livni visited Paris Sunday to attend celebrations for Israel’s 60th Independence Day organized by the French Jewish community.

“This is all so exciting,” she told Israel Radio, adding that “half” the French Cabinet was attending the party.

Livni declined to discuss her closed-door talks with Sarkozy other than to say they were “important and
substantive.”

Like the rest of the European Union, France has demanded that Hamas renounce terrorism and recognize the Jewish state before it can be engaged by the West.

Discussions About this Article Elsewhere

No trackbacks have been created for this article, be the first to create one.

Comments RSS Feed Reader Comments

There are currently no comments to this article. Leave a comment below.

Leave a Comment

To comment on this article, you must first be registered with JTA.

Not Registered?

There are real advantages to a FREE registration with JTA.org:

  • Make your voice heard through comments on articles
  • Receive our e-mailed Daily Briefing, an invaluable quick-read
  • Help decide what Jewish news matters most with interactive tools

Register Now

Already a JTA member?

I forgot my password

I forgot my password
Get JTA's free Daily Briefing newsletter