Benjamin Netanyahu has blamed Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Mark Carney for fuelling antisemitism after two Israeli embassy workers were shot dead in Washington DC.
Mr Netanyahu said the leaders of the UK, France and Canada are “on the wrong side of humanity and (…) history” after they threatened “concrete action” against Israel this week if it continues its “egregious” military operations in Gaza.
He linked the criticism of Israel’s renewed military offensive in the enclave to the shooting outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington DC last night.
The shooter, named as 31-year-old Elias Rodriguez from Chicago, Illinois, told a witness that he “did this for Gaza” before shouting “free, free Palestine” as he was being detained.
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The two victims, Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Lynn Milgrim, worked at the Israeli embassy and had attended an event for young Jewish professionals at the museum before they were shot dead.
Israel’s foreign minister Gideon Sa’ar called the shooting a “direct result of antisemitic enticement” that is “absolutely toxic and has been used across the world” since the 7 October 2023 attacks by Hamas.
Mr Sa’ar said there is a “direct line” between those speaking against Israel’s actions in Gaza, which he calls “blood libels”, and the killings in Washington DC.
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“This incitement is also done by leaders and officials of many countries and international organisations, especially from Europe,” he said.
The term dates back to the Middle Ages when Jewish people were falsely accused of using the blood of Christians and non-Jewish children for religious rituals such as Passover.
This was then used as justification for deadly violence against Jewish people.
The term, while highly contentious and offensive to many, is now used to describe antisemitism or violence against Jewish people, which the perpetrators claim is justified by Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza.
Mr Netanyahu echoed those statements, describing the shootings as the “terrible price of antisemitism” and “rampant incitement against the State of Israel”.
“Blood libels against the Jewish state cost blood,” he said in his statement.
Amichai Chikli, Israel’s diaspora minister, also accused the leaders of the UK, France and Canada of “emboldening the forces of terror”.
In a post on X, he said those who give “backing to this hatred – whether through appeasement, double standards, or silence,” must be held to account.
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Mr Chikli added: “French President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney have all, in different ways, emboldened the forces of terror through their failure to draw moral red lines.
“This cowardice has a price – and that price is paid in Jewish blood.”
Israeli diplomats have since distanced themselves from the comments by Mr Chikli.
A French foreign ministry spokesperson has since rejected the claim that European nations bear blame for the attack as “completely outrageous and completely unjustified”.
“France has condemned, France condemns and France will continue to condemn, always and unequivocally, any act of antisemitism,” the spokesman told AFP.
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In response to the shooting, Sir Keir said he “thoroughly condemns” the incident and that “antisemitism is an evil we must stamp out wherever it appears”.
Mr Macron also posted about the “antisemitic attack”, offering his condolences to the families and loved ones of the victims.
