Israel Rejects New Zealand Ambassador Also Serving as P.A. Envoy
Israel’s Foreign Ministry rejected New Zealand’s new ambassador because he also is the envoy to the Palestinian Authority.
Jonathan Curr had been scheduled to arrive in Jerusalem this week to present his credentials to Israeli President Reuven Rivlin. The trip was canceled, Haaretz reported.
The prior two New Zealand ambassadors to Israel also were accredited to the Palestinian Authority, but Israel was not aware of it, the Foreign Ministry’s spokesman told The Associated Press.
The spokesman, Emmanuel Nahshon, said Israel not accrediting ambassadors also accredited to the P.A. is “a well-known policy. It’s not aimed at New Zealand.”
Curr, based in Turkey, also is the ambassador to Turkey, Jordan, Georgia and Azerbaijan.
“We are looking into what arrangements can be made to ensure we have appropriate representation for Israel and the Palestinian Authority,” New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully said.
Why I became the Forward’s Editor-in-Chief
You are surely a friend of the Forward if you’re reading this. And so it’s with excitement and awe — of all that the Forward is, was, and will be — that I introduce myself to you as the Forward’s newest editor-in-chief.
And what a time to step into the leadership of this storied Jewish institution! For 129 years, the Forward has shaped and told the American Jewish story. I’m stepping in at an intense time for Jews the world over. We urgently need the Forward’s courageous, unflinching journalism — not only as a source of reliable information, but to provide inspiration, healing and hope.
Support our mission to tell the Jewish story fully and fairly.
