The Deputy Director for Africa at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sharon Barley, and the other members of the Israeli delegation were expelled from the African Union (AU) meeting room in Addis Ababa during a meeting of the AU member countries on Saturday, February 18, 2023. According to the Jerusalem Post, security guards approached members of the Israeli delegation and asked them to leave the room.
A senior Israeli Foreign Ministry official said diplomats on the delegation were told the request was initiated by South Africa and Algeria. Israel reacted very negatively to this incident, considering it to be an African Union hostage-taking by a small number of extremist countries, such as Algeria and South Africa, motivated by hatred and controlled by Iran. The expulsion comes as Israel allows nine illegal settlements in the West Bank and threatens the viability of a future Palestinian state as part of a two-state solution.
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