Israel: No ‘Problematic’ Terms Like Palestine State
Israel’s Foreign Ministry has instructed its diplomats to refuse to accept any official mail that uses “problematic terminology” such as the “state of Palestine.”
The instructions come ahead of Thursday’s scheduled vote in the United Nations General Assembly on the Palestinians’ request to elevate their status to non-member observer state, Ynet reported.
Other problematic terms include “occupied Palestine,” “occupied Jerusalem” and “occupied territories.” Palestinian Authority territories is an acceptable term, according to Ynet, which cited Foreign Ministry employee Galia Levanon.
All the terms have appeared in official letters from international organizations and foreign ministries, according to the report.
Letters containing the unacceptable terminology should be returned to the sender with a request that it be revised, according to Ynet.
Meanwhile, the Israeli media is reporting that Israeli will not pull out of the agreements of the Oslo Accords if the request for upgraded U.N. status is passed, as had been threatened. Other possible responses include calling in the Palestinians’ debts, according to the Times of Israel.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning journalism this Passover.
In this age of misinformation, our work is needed like never before. We report on the news that matters most to American Jews, driven by truth, not ideology.
At a time when newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall. That means for the first time in our 126-year history, Forward journalism is free to everyone, everywhere. With an ongoing war, rising antisemitism, and a flood of disinformation that may affect the upcoming election, we believe that free and open access to Jewish journalism is imperative.
Readers like you make it all possible. Right now, we’re in the middle of our Passover Pledge Drive and we still need 300 people to step up and make a gift to sustain our trustworthy, independent journalism.
Make a gift of any size and become a Forward member today. You’ll support our mission to tell the American Jewish story fully and fairly.
— Rachel Fishman Feddersen, Publisher and CEO
Join our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
Only 300 more gifts needed by April 30
