Israel's ambassador to Norway, Miryam Shomrat, critisizes the king and queen of Norway for not showing Israel their support. She says the monarch should have shown sympathy towards the Jews after shots were fired at a synagoge in Oslo a week or two ago. Four men were arrested, it is claimed they were planning, among other things, to attack Israel's ambassador.
"Some sort of statement in connection with the celebration of the Jewish new year last Friday would in any circumstance have been in its place" Shomrat argues.
She also critisizes Norwegian citizens, among them writer Jostein Gaarder, for recently having said and written negative things about Israel, leading Norwegians to have the wrong idea about and hostile attitudes towards Israel and Jews. - There's no wonder criminal activities like these are planned when articles like these are written, Shomrat says.
Norway's Secretary of Foreign Affairs, Jonas Gahr Støre reacts to the ambassador's critisizm of the king and queen, and caracterizes the statement as 'inapropriate'.
He says the Israeli embassy should know the Norwegian monarch can never argue a political case such as this or reply to the critisizm. He also reminds the ambassador that in Norway, it's the government who represents the country's political views.
Are the Jewish/Israeli leaders starting to go where the Muslim leaders already have? Demanding respect from everyone and appologies for everything - no matter who did something wrong and what that 'wrong' was.
This is what happens when we're jumping between faith and religion on one side and countries and political systems on the other. A king will talk to a king. A president argues with a president. Goverments send representatives to each other. A religious leader discusses with another.
How are we supposed to relate to it when an ambassador (a political figure) demands a king (a royal) say sorry to Jews (religious figures) for something terrorists (a legal term?) were planning on doing?
The first thing you gotta do is know who to talk to, just yelling at everyone and everything won't work in a country like ours where you should be polite, quiet and respect each other's space. You're just seen as a silly little person. Just like Miryam Shomrat.
Just a slight update.
ReplyDeleteSince Miryam Shomrat came with her criticism of the king, our prime minister and foreign minister has criticized her. As has the leader of the Jewish society in Oslo whose synagogue was fired upon.
The ambassador has then apologized for her criticism.
And then we hear that the biggest newspaper in Israel quotes an official source who says that "no one is more hostile against Israel than Norway is".
I find that to be rather strange.
A significant number of the Norwegian members of the Parliament are also members of an organisation called "Friends of Israel". And even if we disregard that, I do guess that there might be one or two muslim countries which might be a tad more hostile towards Israel than Norway is. Such as Iran, where the official policy still is that Israel should be eradicated.
Still, I do feel kinda proud that official sources in Israel find Norway to be more hostile than Iran.