Israel recalls ambassador to Netherlands after public criticism of ministers Smotrich, Ben-Gvir
Vapni called Jewish settler extremists in the West Bank "thugs and terrorists," adding that they all belong in prison.
Israel recalled its ambassador to the Netherlands following public criticism of ministers Bezalel Smotrich and Itamar Ben-Gvir, according to a report from the wire service. The ambassador, Zvi Aviner, delivered the critique in a Dutch media interview with Algemeen Dagblad. Aviner labeled the ministers' rhetoric as "terrible" and "unacceptable," and stated he had no intention of defending them.
He further denounced Jewish settler extremists in the West Bank as "thugs and terrorists," and asserted that they should all be imprisoned. The Foreign Ministry subsequently summoned Aviner for an immediate inquiry into his statements. In the same interview, Aviner defended Israel's conduct during the Gaza war, arguing that it was not genocide or ethnic cleansing but a "brutal war against a brutal terrorist organization."
He acknowledged that if they could have avoided the conflict, they would have done so. When asked about the "extremists" in Amsterdam, Aviner responded that the violence must stop and he did not wish to defend such actions, deeming them reprehensible.
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