JERUSALEM: CHINESE PRESIDENT JIANG ZEMIN TOURS JERUSALEM'S HOLY CITY

Record ID: 631277

  • Title: JERUSALEM: CHINESE PRESIDENT JIANG ZEMIN TOURS JERUSALEM'S HOLY CITY
  • Date: 16th April 2000
  • Summary: JERUSALEM (APRIL 16, 2000) (REUTERS) SLV: CHINESE PRESIDENT JIANG ZEMIN ARRIVING AT JERUSALEM'S TEMPLE MOUNT CU: DETAIL OF DOME OF THE ROCK MOSQUE ON TEMPLE MOUNT PAN DOWN: JIANG OUTSIDE DOME OF THE ROCK MOSQUE SLV: ISRAELI SECURITY OUTSIDE TEMPLE MOUNT WS: MEN PRAYING AT WESTERN WALL SLV/SV: JIANG LOOKING AT ARTISTIC REPRESENTATION OF ANCIENT TEMPLE THAT STOOD ON TE
  • Embargoed: 1st May 2000 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: JERUSALEM
  • City:
  • Country: Israel
  • Topics: International Relations
  • Reuters ID: LVAC0Z36BVQM7LB2JR6QCLOR7JJF
  • Story Text: Chinese President Jiang Zemin has toured the holy sites of Jerusalem, paying his respects to three of the world's major religions.
    Jiang began touring the holy sites of Jerusalem on Sunday (April 16), the fifth day of a regional tour that has been clouded by a controversial arms deal.
    First stop was the Dome of the Rock, built in 691 on the Temple Mount which stands proudly as Islam's third-holiest shrine.
    Jiang was escorted into the mosque by Palestinian officials while Israeli security personnel waited outside.
    Following his tour of the mosque, Jiang proceeded to Western Wall, also known as the Wailing Wall.The Western Wall is the only remnant of Judaism's Second Temple and is recognised as Judaism's holiest site.
    After looking at an artist's rendition of the original temple, Jiang donned a skullcap before approaching the wall itself.The Chinese President did not insert a personal prayer into a crack in the wall, as is the usual custom of visitors to the Western Wall.
    To continue his tour of Jerusalem's holy sites, Jiang then made his way to the Church of the Holy Sepulchre which is the traditional site of Jesus's crucifixion, burial and resurrection, and which is considered to be the holiest shrine of Christianity.
    Jiang was surrounded by crowds and security as he entered the holy site of the tomb of Jesus.
    Latin Patriarch, Michel Sabbah was also present for the Chinese leader's visit and greeted the queues of people eagerly awaiting for the dignitaries exit from the church.
    On Saturday, Palestinian President Yasser Arafat asked the Chinese President to appoint a permanent envoy to the Middle East peace process to help advance negotiations.He revealed the content of their discussions following a meeting with the two leaders in the West Bank.
    Speaking before Palestinian politicians and diplomats later in the day, Arafat said that Palestinians look up to the international community, including the friendly China, to play a role in advancing the peace process.
    Palestinians want to create a state in the West Bank and Gaza, with East Jerusalem as its capital.Israel annexed East Jerusalem in 1967 in a move not recognised internationally, calling it the country's "united, eternal capital".
    Jiang said his country would make a maximum effort to push forward the peace process on the basis of the relevant United Nations resolutions and the principle of land for peace.The offer of assistance has grown more relevant as Jiang's relationship with the Jewish state intensifies.
    While Arafat welcomed China's assistance he continued to criticise Israel for lacking a deeper commitment to the signed agreements.
    On the subject of Middle East peace, Palestinian and Israeli negotiators concluded a second round of talks on Friday at the Bolling Air Force base near Washington.They exchanged proposals for reaching a framework accord in May ahead of a final deal in September that will tackle the thorniest issues, such as the fate of Jerusalem, borders, Jewish settlements and Palestinian refugees.
    Jiang is the first Chinese head of state to visit Israel and the Palestinian Authority, and has been on a mission to boost ties with the Jewish state, which have burgeoned with Israel's sale of tens of millions of dollars of military hardware to Beijing.
    The United States is opposed to an Israeli deal to sell China a Russian-made plane with an advanced airborne warning and control system (AWACS).However Israel has said it will go ahead with the sale.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
  • Copyright Notice: (c) Copyright Thomson Reuters 2015. Open For Restrictions - http://about.reuters.com/fulllegal.asp
  • Usage Terms/Restrictions: None
Register