Israel Cuts Ties with "Kaja Kallas" After Comparing Tel Aviv to Apartheid System

SadaNews - Israeli Foreign Minister, Gidon Saar, announced on Thursday the severance of all communications with the European Union's foreign policy chief, Kaja Kallas, following remarks attributed to her comparing Israel's policies towards the Palestinians to the apartheid system that existed in South Africa.

Saar stated in a post on the "X" platform that he decided to halt communication with Kallas until she retracts what he termed the "blood libel" against Israel, claiming that she "deals with Israel with clear hostility and in an unfair manner," according to his expression.

Saar's stance came after reports emerged regarding remarks made by Kallas during closed meetings in Mexico City at the end of May, in which she compared Israel's treatment of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank to the apartheid policies that were implemented in South Africa.

The "Euractiv" website reported last week that Kallas raised this comparison during off-the-record meetings with Mexican officials, based on impressions formed after her visit last year to South Africa and the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg.

According to the report, Kallas's remarks sparked controversy within European Union institutions, given that the EU has not officially adopted the description of Israel as an apartheid regime, despite the existence of European countries that support this notion, including Ireland and Spain.

In his post, Saar mentioned that several elected European officials condemned the remarks attributed to Kallas, considering that she has yet to provide any denial or clarification regarding them.

He added: "As the Foreign Minister of the State of Israel, I have no choice but to cut all communications with Ms. Kallas until she retracts the blood libel she directed against the only Jewish state in the world and the only democracy in the Middle East," according to his expression.