US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro expressed regret for the timing, not the content, of his problematic remarks accusing Israel of enforcing two sets of laws for Jews and Palestinians in Judea and Samaria.
US Ambassador to Israel Dan Shapiro expressed regret for the timing of the remarks he made against Israel last week accusing it of double standards and adhering to two sets of rule of law: one for Israelis and another for Palestinians.
Shapiro made the remarks on the day Dafna Meir, a mother of six from Otniel, was murdered by a Palestinian terrorist and buried, and while a pregnant Israeli women was stabbed and wounded in Tekoa.
“I understand that the timing was not the best,” Shapiro told Israel’s IDF Radio on Monday. “I began [my remarks] by condemning the terror attacks in Otniel and Tekoa. There was only a sentence or two that were controversial, if this offended the Meir family or the mourners – of course I regret that.”
Shapiro did not express regret for the comments themselves, just their timing, and added that he stood by what he said and wanted the Israeli public to understand the points he made at the INSS convention last Monday and see their significance.
His comments drew strong condemnation from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders.
Netanyahu rebuffed the allegations, saying “the ambassador’s comments, on a day when a mother of six is being buried and a pregnant woman is stabbed, are unacceptable and untrue. Israel enforces the law on Israelis and Palestinians. The one responsible for the diplomatic stalemate is the Palestinian Authority, which continues to incite and refuses to negotiate.”
However, Shapiro received support from the Obama administration for his contentious remarks.
By: Max Gelber, United with Israel