Two hundred and fifty members of Parliament, Gaullists and prominent political leaders among them, signed an appeal yesterday urging France to join with the other big powers to work for direct Israel-Arab talks to bring about peace in the Middle East. The appeal was authored by General Koenig, a leader of the French Resistance movement in World War II, who is chairman of the Committee for Solidarity with Israel.
It affirmed Israel’s right to have “secure borders” in face of the new dangers that threaten her, and said that “it cannot be envisaged that Israel should abandon any position before being certain of protection from destructive hatred.” The document said that “the great powers, and France especially, have a duty to contribute to the creation of a direct dialogue, thus bringing about an end to the conflict in the Middle East.”
The signing of this appeal by members of France’s Parliament appeared to confirm an editorial comment by Pierre Paraf in Combat, yesterday, that, of all the grave international problems, “French public opinion is most sensitive to the of Israel.”
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