Region | Palestinian Territories

Lavish ceremonies in Israel for US leader

The entire Israeli cabinet, a full army band and honour guard in white ceremonial uniforms, and a row of red carpets welcomed President George W. Bush yesterday for the first US presidential visit to the Israel in a decade.

  • AP
  • Published: 00:55 January 10, 2008
  • Gulf News

  • Image Credit: EPA
  • George W. Bush speaks to a member of the clergy as he meets government members and notables on his arrival at Ben Gurion Airport outside Tel Aviv.
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Occupied Jerusalem: The entire Israeli cabinet, a full army band and honour guard in white ceremonial uniforms, and a row of red carpets welcomed President George W. Bush yesterday for the first US presidential visit to the Israel in a decade.

It was an exceptional outpouring of support for a president not too accustomed to warm greetings overseas.

Bush seemed moved as the American and Israeli anthems were played, with President Shimon Peres and Prime Minister Ehud Olmert flanking him on either side.

Bush inspected the row of neatly pressed soldiers and briefly exchanged pleasantries with Israel's top personalities, including the army chief of staff, the head of the central bank and Israel's two chief rabbis, as patriotic tunes played in the background and the flags of both nations flapped in the wind.

An emotional Olmert thanked Bush for his unwavering commitment to Israel, calling the bond between the two countries "unshakable".

"You're our strongest and most trusted ally," Olmert said. "Your solidarity with the people of Israel has won you the love and admiration of all the citizens of Israel, and we all feel privileged to have you here with us."

Yitzhak Ben Ami, 72, a retired teacher in occupied Jerusalem, agreed. "Bush is the most popular US president of all time for Israel. He has done a lot for the country and it is an honour to have him here," he said.

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Bush's warm reception in Israel stood in sharp contrast to the feeling in the West Bank and Gaza, where Palestinian attitudes toward Bush range from ambivalence to outright hatred.

The municipality shelled out nearly $400,000 (about Dh1.47 million) to tidy up the city ahead of the three-day presidential visit.

Some 10,000 officers were deployed across the city, bringing traffic to a standstill. Snipers were positioned on rooftops surrounding the historic King David Hotel — where Bush and his large entourage will stay.

"All this mess is unnecessary. He could have done all of this over the phone," said Shimon Mizrachi, a 54-year-old taxi driver.

Iran threat to peace

Mizrachi also had his reservations about Bush's push for peace talks.

"Both leaders are determined to make the hard choices necessary," Bush said after meeting Olmert for nearly 3 hours.

"It's a historic opportunity to work for peace," he said. "I wouldn't be standing here if I did not believe that you, Mr. Prime Minister, and Mr. [Mahmoud] Abbas ... are serious."

"Iran is a threat to world peace," Bush said, adding that there would be "serious consequences" if Tehran's forces attacked US ships in the Gulf, where Iranian vessels confronted US naval forces in a key shipping lane last week.

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