- Title: FRANCE-SHOOTING/KERRY-TOWN HALL "I came to share a hug" - Kerry to French
- Date: 16th January 2015
- Summary: ****WARNING CONTAINS FLASH PHOTOGRAPHY*** KERRY LISTENING TAYLOR SINGING, LEAVING STAGE UNDER APPLAUDS
- Embargoed: 31st January 2015 12:00
- Keywords:
- Location: France
- Country: France
- Topics: General
- Reuters ID: LVA4CDLTAQV97DYFKNLNBLQI2X3P
- Story Text: United States (U.S.) Secretary of State John Kerry told the French people on Friday (January 16) that Americans shared the 'horror and revulsion' at the Islamist attacks that killed 17 people last week.
The chief U.S. diplomat laid wreaths of white lilies and red roses at the sites of the two attacks, one on the Charlie Hebdo satirical weekly and the other at a Jewish supermarket in the French capital.
Kerry's visit came after the United States failed to send a top official to attend Sunday's (January 11) march in the French capital, an omission that led to significant domestic criticism and a rare White House admission that it had made a mistake.
Kerry said he wanted to give "a big hug" to the French people and earlier on Friday, Kerry embraced President Francois Hollande in the courtyard of the Elysee Palace before going inside for a meeting.
"And today I just, I really wanted to come here and share a hug with all of Paris and all of France. I wanted to express to you personally the sheer horror and revulsion that all Americans felt for the cowardly and despicable act and assault on innocent lives and on fundamental values," Kerry said in an address at the Paris city hall (Hotel de Ville).
While Kerry and his aides stressed that he was not trying to make amends for the U.S. absence on Sunday, by word and deed he sought to convey the United States' solidarity with France, its oldest ally.
Switching to French, Kerry said: "No nation knows better than France that freedom has a price, because France is at the origin of so many revolutions of the human minds including our own. Your commitment to freedom and to freedom of speech is an inspiration for the world."
Kerry, who learned the language as a boy, spoke about his mother, who worked as a nurse in Paris during World War II and fled the Nazis by bicycle with her sister to Portugal, where she embarked on a boat for the United States.
"What should be beyond debate, beyond the scope of politics or religion, satire or culture, is the common aspiration to create a world rich in love and short on hate. So today at the Hotel de Ville, I join with you in honouring those no longer with us and share with their loved ones the sadness of their loss but the pride in their lives," Kerry said.
American musician James Taylor sang a song at the same event. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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