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.
I hope you appreciated this article. Before you go, I’d like to ask you to please support the Forward’s award-winning, nonprofit journalism during this critical time.
Now more than ever, American Jews need independent news they can trust, with reporting driven by truth, not ideology. We serve you, not any ideological agenda.
At a time when other newsrooms are closing or cutting back, the Forward has removed its paywall and invested additional resources to report on the ground from Israel and around the U.S. on the impact of the war, rising antisemitism and the protests on college campuses.
Readers like you make it all possible. Support our work by becoming a Forward Member and connect with our journalism and your community.
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.