Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu appeared to shift blame to his senior diplomat Eli Cohen for the disclosure of a secret meeting with the Libyan Foreign Minister Najla Mangoush that has caused a backlash in Tripoli.
Cohen’s office on Aug. 26 went public with his having met Mangoush in Italy earlier in the month. The statement came on the heels of an Israeli media report about the meeting.
The news triggered protests in Libya, which does not recognise Israel and where pro-Palestinian sentiment is strong, and led Prime Minister Abdulhamid al-Dbeibah to fire Mangoush.
“It is not helpful, now that’s clear,” Netanyahu told Cypriot TV station ANT1 when asked about the publication.
“I’ve issued a directive to all our government ministers that such meetings of this kind have to be cleared in advance with my office, and certainly their publication has to be cleared in advance with my office.”
Analysts say Dbeibah and other Libyan leaders have attempted to build ties with Israel in the hope that the United States, which sees Arab normalisation of relations with Israel as a priority, would support them in Libya’s internal political rifts.
Israel, for its part, is keen to pursue discreet talks with potential Arab and Muslim partners in the hope that they will develop into full ties. In the ANT1 interview, Netanyahu called the handling of the Cohen-Magoush meeting “an exception to the rule”.
In an Aug. 28 social media post pushing back against the furore, Cohen defended his ministry for “always working in overt and covert channels, and in a range of discreet means, to bolster Israel’s foreign relations”.
In a significant move towards greater digital accessibility, the Supreme Council of Cyberspace, chaired by…
The United Nations agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA) has announced that 14,500 Palestinian children have…
At least 12 people were killed and three others wounded after a blast rocked an…
The number of killed and injured North Korean soldiers fighting alongside Russian forces in Kursk…
The spokesperson for Iran’s Judiciary clarified that no complaints have been filed against former Foreign…
The Iranian Vice President for Science, Technology and Knowledge-Based Economy has announced the inauguration of…