The Israeli Embassy in Ireland has said it finds the positions being adopted by the Irish Government “to be unfriendly and not in the spirit of bilateral cooperation”.
In a statement, it also contends there has been a “troubling rise in anti-Israel discourse in Ireland, which has often mutated into antisemitism and the delegitimisation of Israel.”
The comments come after Taoiseach Simon Harris and Tánaiste Micheál Martin spoke out strongly in support of President Michael D Higgins in his dispute with the embassy over a letter that the president had sent to the newly elected president of Iran.
The statement describes President Higgins’ claim that the embassy leaked his letter to the incoming Iranian President as “baseless”.
It then describes the media coverage surrounding the row as “… a distraction from the real issues which are the lack of understanding of the existential threat that Israel faces from state and non-state actors such as Iran and its proxies; in particular Hezbollah and Hamas, Iran’s call for the destruction of Israel, its funding and support for terrorism and its human rights violations.”
The embassy notes that its Ambassador, Dana Erlich, was recalled in May, due to the Irish Government’s recognition of the Palestinian state – a decision it claimed Hamas has interpreted “as a reward”.
The statement also says: “We do hope that under different, more friendly conditions, Ambassador Erlich will resume her duties in Dublin and continue the important work ahead of her.”
Speaking during a news conference at the United Nations in New York, President Higgins said that he had written to Masoud Pezeshkian as a new head of state and alleged the Israeli embassy had circulated the letter.
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The embassy said the allegations were “highly inflammatory and potentially slanderous” and rejected them “completely”.
The Israeli embassy criticised President Higgins for writing the letter to Iran which referenced the “threat” that Israel poses in the Middle East and its human rights record.
“It is the burden of the author to defend its content, which did not mention the threat Iran poses in the region, that it calls for Israel’s destruction, that it arms and funds terrorist organisations like Hamas and Hezbollah, not to mention the violations of human rights against its own citizens,” the embassy added.
‘Horrific humanitarian situation’
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The Taoiseach said that Israel “is continuing to allow [a] horrific humanitarian situation continue” in Gaza.
“I think the Israeli embassy should be focusing on things other than amplifying, circulating or referencing a letter that does really conform with normal diplomatic protocol between heads of state,” Mr Harris said.
“You’d like to think that Israel would be more concerned with the fact that 14,000 children in Gaza are dead, that at least 20,000 are missing, many presumed dead.
“Certainly, my focus here in New York is not on an exchange of letters, but is on the fact that there is still a horrific, bloody humanitarian catastrophe unfolding in the Middle East.”
Mr Harris added: “I have no interest whatsoever in getting into any sort of tit for tat or back or forth with the Israeli embassy or the government of a country that is continuing to allow this horrific humanitarian situation continue where children are dying on a daily basis, many more being maimed and many, many hundreds of thousands, if not millions, being deprived access to humanitarian aid.”
A ‘standard letter’
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Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Micheál Martin said the correspondence was a “standard letter and in a diplomatic context, would be an appropriate letter in terms of a new government coming in, because diplomacy is the key to ending all of this war and all of this conflict.
“In that letter, references are made to peace, the importance of diplomacy to bring an end to conflict, because we appeal to Iran not to escalate the situation in the region, for example.
“In terms of the circulation of the letter, I’m not aware of who or what or how it emerged, but I think the criticism of the president was unfair in terms of the motivation behind that letter,” Mr Martin added.
“There’s no issue with these letters being sent. We write when leaders pass away, for example, or when new leaders are elected, because diplomacy is about keeping channels of communication open.”
Both Mr Harris and Mr Martin were also speaking in New York.
Read more: What to expect at this year’s UN General Assembly
Additional reporting: Paul Cunningham
