Protesters at Paris Airshow call for Israel boycott
The protesters, wearing green shirts emblazoned with the words "Boycott Israel", gathered in front of the Israeli pavilion, where they distributed leaflets and chanted against the Israeli presence before being dispersed by police.
[Haaretz] - Around 20 people protested Saturday against the opening of an Israeli pavilion at the annual Paris Airshow.
The protesters, wearing green shirts emblazoned with the words "Boycott Israel", gathered in front of the Israeli pavilion, where they distributed leaflets and chanted against the Israeli presence before being dispersed by police.
Dozens of visitors were at the Israeli pavilion at the time of the protest. The pavilion, run by the Export Institute, includes leading Israeli companies in the fields of defense systems, vehicle armor systems and electronics, including Rafael, Rada, Aeronautics and Plasan.
The Israeli aerial industry is being housed in a separate pavilion nearby.
The Paris Airshow, considered one of the largest international trade fairs for the aerospace industry, opened to the public on Friday after around a week of private exhibitions. Event organizers expect around 200,000 visitors in total.
French President Nicola Sarkozy was expected to attend the airshow Saturday.
