Israel view on Ireland “unfair”– Coveney

Minister Simon Coveney says there’s a view in Israel that Ireland has taken “a very strong position” on “one side of the argument”. He believes that may have triggered the strong response over the weekend from the Israeli foreign minister.

Eli Cohen condemned the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar over his remarks about the release of the Irish-Israeli girl, Emily Hand. In a statement the Taoiseach referred to Emily as an innocent child who was lost and has now been found and returned. The remarks sparked outrage in Tel Aviv with Minister Cohen accusing the Taoiseach of “losing his moral compass”.

This morning in Brussels (where he’s attending an EU Trade Ministers meeting) Simon Coveney said he’s hoping the dispute can be “settled” quickly when the Irish Ambassador has the opportunity to visit the Israeli Foreign Ministry.

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