Friday, April 08, 2005
Leaders of Israel, Iran, Syria shake hands at Pope's funeral
Ha'aretz reports:
President Moshe Katsav, who was at the Vatican as part of Israel's delegation to the funeral of Pope John Paul II, twice shook hands with Syrian President Bashar Assad on Friday.
The two men were in close proximity to one another throughout the procession due to the fact that the Israel and Syrian delegations to the funeral were positioned next to one another.
At the conclusion of funeral services, the Iranian-born Katsav also shook hands with President Mohammad Khatami. The two spoke for almost an hour in Farsi.
Katsav also reportedly embraced Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika.
Also at the Vatican, Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom met with his Moroccan counterpart Mohammed Ben-Issa.
Shalom's wife, Judy Shalom-Nir-Mozes, presented Britain's Prince Charles with a talisman from prominent spiritual leader Rabbi Kadouri on the occasion of his upcoming marriage to longtime girlfriend Camilla Parker-Bowles.
A non-event, but a huge non-event in the context of the history of Arab-Israel conflict, and a heart-warming tribute to the outreach and conciliation efforts of Pope John Paul II, may he rest in peace.
