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France Plotzes as Sarko Jr Weds Jewish Heiress

Nuptials spark anti-Semitic debate

By Jason Farago, Newser Staff

Posted Sep 11, 2008 8:55 AM CDT

(Newser) – Jean Sarkozy, the 22-year-old son of France's president, married his childhood sweetheart last night in a ceremony so under wraps that guests were informed via text message. A possible reason for the secrecy? His bride, the heiress to a huge electronics company, is Jewish—and the marriage has set off a wave of soul-searching in the French press about the country's legacy of anti-Semitism.

One of France's most popular columnists alleged that Jean Sarkozy would convert to Judaism, adding, "He'll go far, that kid." Those remarks got the writer fired, opened several lawsuits, and set off a huge debate in France. The younger Sarkozy, who is also a politician, said the rumors of conversion are false, and that he was so shocked by anti-Semitic graffiti and blogs that "I ask myself where it all comes from."

[Images (4)]

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Jean Sarkozy, the son of French president Nicolas Sarkozy, walks the streets of Neuilly-sur-Seine, west of Paris, Sunday, Feb. 10, 2008. (AP Photo/Michel Spingler)

French President Nicolas Sarkozy's 21-year-old son Jean Sarkozy, center, attends a ruling party UMP meeting on his local political situation, in Paris, Tuesday Feb.12, 2008. (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon)

Jean Sarkozy, the son of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, leaves a voting booth before he casts his vote, Sunday, March 9, 2008 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, west of Paris. (AP Photo/Thomas Padilla)

French President Nicolas Sarkozy's 21-year-old son Jean Sarkozy attends a ruling party UMP meeting on his local political situation, in Paris, Tuesday Feb.12, 2008. (AP Photo/Jacques Brinon)

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I'm very shocked; I ask myself where it all comes from and why I'm singled out for such treatment. People seize on a rumor to ask me about possible choices that have nothing to do with my political work. - Jean Sarkozy

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France Plotzes as Sarko Jr Weds Jewish Heiress