Israel's ambassador to the US, called in the country to give explanations after a controversial interview
Yechiel Leiter, Israel's ambassador to the US: CQ-Roll Call / DDP USA / Profimedia
Israel's ambassador to the United States, Yechiel Leiter, was convened by the Israeli Foreign Ministry following statements from a recent interview, the diplomatic institution said on Sunday, AFP, taken over by Agerpres.
The decision follows an interview for Prageru, the American Conservative Media Organization, in which Leiter accused the opponents of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of propagating accusations comparable to “a ritual crime” against him.
“The general director of the Foreign Ministry, Eden Bar-Tal, will convene the ambassador to Washington, Dr. Yechiel Leiter, for an audience regarding the statements made in an interview,” a spokesman said in a statement.
Even if his appointment is political -Leiter being designated by Netanyahu -, the Israeli diplomat is, in principle, obliged not to comment on internal policy topics.
In the interview, Yechiel Leiter accused the “left-handed extremists” and the Israeli media of trying to overthrow the government, qualifying these attempts as “slanders” by desizing the prime minister.
He said that certain critics accuse Netanyahu of prolonging the war in Gaza just to stay in power, an idea that Leiter called “malicious” and “madness”.
A poll published on Saturday by the Israeli channel 12 shows that 55% of the inhabitants believe that Netanyahu is rather motivated by keeping in power than by the end of the war or by issuing the hostages still in Gaza.
Yechiel Leiter, 65 years old, a former Netanyahu counselor, is of American origin and lived in a colony in the busy Westordan. His son, Moshe Leiter, an officer in the Israeli army, was killed in November 2023 in the Gaza Strip.
