Israel says it is cutting ties with EU ambassador over ‘racist’ comments | Israel-Palestine War News

The UN human rights office has already found Israel to be in violation of international law that prohibits discrimination.

Israel’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Gideon Saar He has said that he has suspended communication with the head of the European Union’s foreign policy, Kaja Kallas, after comparing what Israel does to the Palestinians with the old apartheid policy in South Africa.

The diplomatic row erupted after European news agency Euractiv reported last week that Kallas had made the comments during talks with Mexican officials in May.

Citing unnamed diplomats and officials, Kallas compared Israel’s policy in Gaza to the West Bank, which was occupied by the apartheid government that ruled South Africa until the early 1990s.

In a letter to X on Thursday, Saar accused Kallas of showing longstanding pro-Israel bias.

He wrote: “For some time, Kaja Kallas has been involved in extreme and unjust actions in the Israeli government. Saar said Kallas has not denied or clarified the allegations, which left him with “no choice but to cut off all contact” until he removed what he called a “bloody insult” against Israel.

Kallas responded publicly, stressing that the EU remained committed to maintaining relations with Israel, but did not directly respond to the charge of discrimination.

“Dear Gideon, as you know, the EU and Israel have a lot that unites us,” he wrote on X. “Discussion is the basis of dialogue, especially if there are differences.”

Kallas also said that the EU is helping to end the bilateral agreement and its opposition to illegal Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, which Brussels considers illegal under international law.

Less than an hour later, Saar said that Kallas’ comments did not change his opinion about cutting ties, saying that in his X posts, he did not deny or criticize the racist comment that was attributed to him.

The dispute comes as Israel examines Israel’s brutal treatment of Palestinians as it continues its attacks on Gaza and frequent attacks on villages in the West Bank.

In January, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights concluded that Israel is “violating international law” that requires countries to prohibit and eliminate racism and discrimination.

“Israeli authorities treat Israelis and Palestinians living in the West Bank under two different laws and policies, leading to misunderstandings over various issues, including movement and access to resources such as land and water, the report finds,” it said.

“Palestinians continue to be dispossessed and deprived of access to resources,” it added.

These findings are in line with what the International Court of Justice (ICJ) said in its landmark opinion of July 2024, which found Israel’s occupation of the Palestinian territories unconstitutional and cited concerns about racism and discrimination in the Palestinian territories.