Netanyahu Rebukes Deputy After She Criticized U.S. Jews for Not 'Fighting for Their Country'
Source: Haaretz
'There is no room for such attacks and these comments do not represent Israel's position,' says Prime Minister Netanyahu
Haaretz Nov 23, 2017 11:32 AM
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has condemned disparaging comments made by Israel's deputy foreign minister against U.S. Jews, saying that "Diaspora Jews are dear to us and an inseparable part of our people."
"There is no room for such attacks and these comments do not represent Israel's position," Netanyahu said about Tzipi Hotevely's criticism, who serves as his deputy in his capacity as foreign minister.
Hotovely attacked U.S. Jewry in an interview with i24 News on Wednesday, blaming the growing rift between the American Jewish community and Israel on the former's "convenient lives," as well as not knowing "how it feels to be attacked by rockets." She also said that American Jews were using the Western Wall crisis for political gain.
Hotovely also responded to the outcry her interview caused, attempting to step back the comments, saying on Thursday she was only trying to talk about complexity of life in Israel under the threat of constant terror. She said that the contribution of U.S. Jews to Israel was large, but noted that its ties to Israel could not be conditioned on its government's policies.
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Read more: https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/1.824553
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Or Rahm Emmanuel. 