{
    "success": true,
    "data": {
        "id": 1811352,
        "msgid": "israel-suspends-contact-with-eu-foreign-policy-chief-over-apartheid-comparison-1781833933",
        "date": "2026-06-19 07:34:25",
        "title": "Israel Suspends Contact with EU Foreign Policy Chief Over Apartheid Comparison",
        "author": "Fitriyan Zamzami",
        "source": "REPUBLIKA",
        "tags": "",
        "topic": "Politics",
        "summary": "Israel's foreign minister has suspended diplomatic contact with the EU's top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, following reports she compared Israel's treatment of Palestinians to apartheid. The dispute erupted after a European news outlet reported Kallas made the comparison in a private meeting, a claim she has not explicitly denied. The rift underscores growing international scrutiny of Israel's policies in the occupied territories, which have been likened to apartheid by UN and ICJ findings.",
        "content": "<p>Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar announced he is suspending\ncontact with EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas after reports she\ncompared Israel\u2019s treatment of Palestinians to the apartheid system in\nSouth Africa. The diplomatic row erupted after European news outlet\nEuractiv reported last week that Kallas made the remarks during\nhigh-level talks with Mexican officials in May. Citing unnamed diplomats\nand officials, the outlet said Kallas compared Israeli policies in Gaza\nand the occupied West Bank to the racial segregation regime that ruled\nSouth Africa until the early 1990s. In a post on X on Thursday, Saar\naccused Kallas of demonstrating long-standing bias against Israel. \u2018Kaja\nKallas has for some time been acting in an obsessive and blatantly\nunfair manner against the State of Israel,\u2019 he wrote. Saar said Kallas\nhad not denied or clarified the reported comments, leaving him \u2018no\nchoice but to decide to sever all contact\u2019 until she retracts what he\ncalled a \u2018blood libel\u2019 against Israel. Kallas responded publicly,\nstressing that the EU remains committed to maintaining relations with\nIsrael, but she did not directly address the apartheid allegation. \u2018Dear\nGideon, as you know, the EU and Israel have many things that bind us,\u2019\nshe wrote on X. \u2018Dialogue is the cornerstone of diplomacy, especially\nwhen differences arise.\u2019 Kallas reaffirmed the EU\u2019s support for a\ntwo-state solution and its rejection of illegal Israeli settlements in\nthe occupied West Bank, which Brussels considers illegal under\ninternational law. Less than an hour later, Saar said Kallas\u2019s comments\nhad not changed his mind about severing ties, noting that in her X post\nshe did not deny or condemn the apartheid remarks attributed to her. The\ndispute comes amid heightened international scrutiny of Israel\u2019s\ntreatment of Palestinians during the ongoing assault on Gaza and\nfrequent raids on villages in the occupied West Bank. In January, the UN\nOffice of the High Commissioner for Human Rights concluded that Israel\nwas \u2018in breach of international law\u2019 requiring states to prohibit and\neradicate racial segregation and apartheid. The report found that\nIsraeli authorities treat Israeli settlers and Palestinians living in\nthe West Bank under two different sets of laws and policies, resulting\nin unequal treatment on key issues including movement and access to\nresources such as land and water. These findings align with conclusions\nreached by the International Court of Justice in its advisory opinion in\nJuly 2024, which stated that Israel\u2019s occupation of Palestinian\nterritory is unlawful and raised concerns over racial segregation and\napartheid in the occupied Palestinian territories.<\/p>",
        "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/israel-suspends-contact-with-eu-foreign-policy-chief-over-apartheid-comparison-1781833933",
        "image": ""
    },
    "sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
    "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}