Israel is expected to ask France to postpone visits by three French Cabinet ministers scheduled to take place during the next two months, but it is not likely to break diplomatic ties with France over the release of Palestinian terrorist Abu Daoud, sources here said today.
Foreign Minister Yigal Allon said last night, however, that relations between Israel and France were in a “state of crisis.” But at a meeting with the families of the ll Israeli athletes murdered at the 1972 Munich Olympics–an act for which Daoud is believed to have been responsible–Allon rejected demands that French Ambassador Jean Herly be declared persona non grata and removed from Israel. He told a group in Tel Aviv that this was not practical. Asked by reporters what further action the government planned to take, the Foreign Minister replied, “Do you want us to declare war on France? We have not as yet received the full explanations from France. Let’s wait and see.”
JTA has documented Jewish history in real-time for over a century. Keep our journalism strong by joining us in supporting independent, award-winning reporting.
The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
