Although Segolene Royal is not a head of state, she enjoyed a welcome fit for a queen. No head of an opposition was ever greeted so warmly in Israel and by the country's leaders as was Royal. Legions of the press followed her everywhere, fighting w ith each other to catch a wisp of a smile for a photograph.

The French socialist presidential candidate listened closely as her hosts explained to her the complexities of the Arab-Israeli labyrinth. More than once she asked basic, simplistic questions such as "what do you think of the Palestinian problem?"

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Prime Minister Ehud Olmert went out of his way to show good spirits. And Royal gave him one of her smiles, which melted the basic Israeli suspicion toward France. The two sat in the cabinet meeting room in the Knesset and discussed a number of issues, ranging from the cease-fire between Israel and the Palestinians to Israel Air Force flights over Lebanon.

Earlier, Royal paid courtesy calls on Defense Minister Amir Peretz and Knesset Speaker Dalia Itzik. Itzik took the trouble to remind her guest of the incident that occurred while she herself was in Lebanon, when a Hezbollah parliament member compared Israel to the Nazis. Royal explained that if she had heard the remark herself, she would not have remained calmly seated, but would have responded harshly and left the room, slamming the door behind her.

On the Iranian issues, Segolene expressed an unequivocal opinion that found favor with her Israeli interlocutors. "I oppose all Iranian nuclear development, including civilian development," she said, "because I know how easy the transition is between civilian and military development."

Of all the issues Royal discussed, she came across the most well-versed and firm on the subject of Iran. In all her meetings she emphasized that she was the only leader in her country to express great concern over the Iranian civilian nuclear program. "It endangers not only Israel's security, but the peace of the entire world," she said. "All those who come to me with complaints in my country that I do now know the geopolitical situation well, I reiterate that a nuclear Iran is a great danger to the world. If I am elected president, I will keep this position." Royal said she had stated this in her talks in Lebanon and Jordan, as well as Israel. "The Israeli prime minister thanked me for my position," she added.

Members of her entourage said that during her visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, Segolene's face paled from shock as she looked at the pictures. "There are feelings so strong one feels them very intimately," she said after the visit.

"In my meeting with young people, I heard that they too live in fear and lack of security here in Israel and when they travel in Europe. That was the thing that shocked me most in my meeting with [them]. Therefore we must do everything to find a sustainable solution for the region," she said, adding, "politicians must think of solutions to bring peace to young people, so they can live without fear."

In a press conference last night in Jerusalem, Royal reiterated her position that the stance of the international community against contacts with Hamas was correct. "If the organization changes its positions, the world will also change its positions," she said.