TUNIS, Tunisia, July 20 (UPI) -- French Foreign Minister Michel Barnier lashed out at Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon for calling on French Jews to immigrate to Israel.
"These words are inadmissible and unacceptable," Barnier told a press conference at the end of his visit to Tunisia late Monday night.
Earlier Monday, enraged French President Jacques Chirac informed Israel that Prime Minister Ariel Sharon would not be welcome in Paris.
Sunday, Sharon said France's Jews should move to Israel to escape a tide of anti-Semitism.
Sharon's comments, which touched off a wave of anger in Paris, "touch on the mere principles of the French republic, its strength and honor, notably that freedom and protection are guaranteed under the constitution to all those living in France regardless of their religious or political affiliations," Barnier said.
France is home to Europe's biggest Jewish and Muslim communities, estimated at 600,000 and 5 million, respectively.
