Subscribe to Print Edition | Thu., June 19, 2008 Sivan 16, 5768 | | Israel Time: 13:23 (EST+7) web haaretz.com   Back to Homepage Rosner's Domain Diplomacy Defense Jewish World Opinion National Print Edition Car Rental Books Peres Conference Business Real Estate Easy Start Travel Week's End Anglo File

Iran's Mohammad Khatami, right, and President Moshe Katsav at the Vatican on Friday before Pope John Paul II's funeral. (AP) Katsav blasted over handshake with Khatami By Aluf Benn and Yoav Stern and Agencies Tags: Moshe Katsav, Bashar Assad Senior officials in Jerusalem criticized President Moshe Katsav over the weekend for shaking the hand of Iranian President Mohammad Khatami at Pope John Paul II's funeral on Friday. "Iran declares openly that it wants to liquidate Israel. What would we say if the president of the United States shook Khatami's hand?" one of the officials asked. He said that Israel is working to isolate Iran for its threats to destroy Israel and efforts to manufacture nuclear arms. According to the source, there was "no problem with shaking Syrian President Bashar Assad's hand." Advertisement Prime Minister Ariel Sharon has not discussed the issue with Katsav and his aides said he has no intention of doing so. Earlier, Katsav said he had shaken hands with Khatami and Assad at the funeral on Friday. But Khatami vehemently denied this. "This claim is like other baseless claims made by the Zionist media in the past," he said. "Recognizing Israel means recognizing occupation and force," Khatami told the state-run Iranian media. "Morally and logically, we do not recognize the Zionist regime. "As long as the Palestinian nation doesn't feel that its rights have been met, no peace plan will succeed, but we won't interfere," Khatami said. Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom said he doubted that handshakes between President Katsav and the leaders of Syria and Iran constituted a diplomatic breakthrough. "I hope it can be a new beginning, certainly. But frankly, I doubt it," Shalom said in an interview with Italian daily La Stampa. "Khatami and Assad are two extremists," he said. "It could only have happened thanks to the truly magnetic personality of John Paul II." "We cannot forget the reality: The Syrians have to stop terrorism emanating from Lebanon and put an end to the occupation of that country. The Iranians have to halt their nuclear rearmament program, which directly threatens us," said Shalom, who also attended the funeral. Katsav told Channel 2 television Friday that his handshakes with Assad and Khatami were a matter of politeness and had no policy implications. Katsav, who shook hands twice with Assad on Friday, said it was Assad who initiated the handshake Bookmark to del.icio.us   Fragile cease-fire Olmert: Gaza cease-fire is fragile, may be short lived. Unbalanced stance Italy FM: EU stance on Israel in past swayed by intolerance.   1.   just a handshake 12:25  |  thea 10/04/05   2.   khatami`s hand 12:27  |  haim 10/04/05   3.   Katsav-Khatami handshake 12:38  |  Emerich 10/04/05   4.   Khatami and Katsav 12:52  |  Susan 10/04/05   5.   Katsav Handshake 12:55  |  ash 10/04/05   6.   Relations With Iran should be improved! 13:12  |  Yacob 10/04/05   7.   handshake 13:27  |  Bettina Sanders 10/04/05   8.   Two Iranians shaking hands 13:28  |  Matin 10/04/05   9.   Katsav`s critics are overreacting 13:35  |  Jay McGoff 10/04/05   10.   the hand shake 14:04  |  doron korn 10/04/05   11.   Katsav did right. 14:06  |  Alissa 10/04/05   12.   Such a fuss over a handshake or two 14:39  |  Ros 10/04/05   13.   "Senior officials in Jerusalem" 15:49  |  Richard Thomas 10/04/05   14.   Khatami`s Denial 17:44  |  Abi 10/04/05   15.   Katsav`s handshake 17:52  |  Shulamite 10/04/05   16.   Iran 19:15  |  Grossman 10/04/05   17.   Katsav 19:22  |  Michael 10/04/05   18.   The handshake 19:57  |  Martin Philip 10/04/05   19.   finally 20:08  |  Camille-Alexandre 10/04/05   20.   blood stained handshake 21:37  |  mike 10/04/05   21.   katzav and khatami 22:02  |  tiki 10/04/05   22.   Katsav`s hands outsretsched for peace 22:33  |  Sarah Howard 10/04/05   23.   Handshake 00:19  |  Efi 11/04/05   24.   No Harm 00:22  |  Sinai Golan 11/04/05   25.   Handshake 00:31  |  Jonathan 11/04/05   26.   jewish blood 03:30  |  nada 11/04/05   27.   Shame and Embarassment 03:57  |  Albert S. 11/04/05   28.   Keep your friends close keep your enemies closer 08:12  |  Joseph Barnathan 11/04/05   29.   We are all the same 09:44  |  Shahed 11/04/05   30.   Katsav blasted over handshake with Khatami 04:18  |  ali 30/04/05

Read & React Israel-Hamas truce takes hold in Gaza Responses: 59 Editorial: A lengthy cease-fire is an achievement for Israel Responses: 24 ANALYSIS / For Gaza truce architect, Israel chose lesser of 2 evils Responses: 43 Rosner's Domain / The Joe Lieberman dilemma Responses: 21 Jerusalem denies services to Palestinian residents over the fence Responses: 25 More Headlines 12:51 Israel-Hamas truce takes hold in Gaza 12:17 Four police officers injured in clashes with West Bank settlers 12:24 Environmentalists win decade-long war against Eilat fish farms 12:34 Noam Shalit: Gaza siege mustn't be lifted until Gilad freed 09:57 Egypt to tell UN: Demand Israel hand over Shaba Farms to int'l peacekeepers 12:52 Eager yet untrusting, both sides of Gaza border await calm 08:56 Rosner's Domain / The Joe Lieberman dilemma 12:32 Egypt police shoot dead African migrant trying to cross into Israel 12:53 ANALYSIS / For truce architect, Israel chose lesser of two evils 10:20 Iran says ready to negotiate on incentives to halt nuclear program 07:30 Defense officials: No prisoner swap with Hezbollah this weekend 11:50 Israel baseball league says it will return after tumultuous first season 09:03 J'lem city hall refuses services to area beyond separation fence 06:16 Taxis and trucks to clog main T.A. artery in fuel price protest Previous Editions Select Day 18 jun 17 jun 16 jun 15 jun 13 jun 12 jun 11 jun 10 jun 09 jun 08 jun 06 jun 05 jun

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