The Israeli Foreign Ministry also summoned Swedish Ambassador to Israel Carl Magnus on Wednesday to reprimand him over Wallstrom’s comments. But Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said it wasn’t aware of that decision, Haaretz reported.
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Israel controls American politicians and media through its powerful lobby in Washington, enabling it to change the political dynamics in favor of the regime in Tel Aviv, says a journalist in NY.
“For over two years, relations with Sweden have been at some level of disconnect”.
As the controversy erupted, a Swedish delegation including one of the country’s deputy parliament speakers, Esabelle Dingizian, was visiting Israel. The rest have been killed in clashes with Israeli troops.
The violence since October, with nearly daily stabbings, shootings and other attacks by Palestinians targeting Israelis, has been fueled in part by Palestinian frustration at failed statehood talks and a dispute over a Jerusalem holy site, with Muslims angered by perceived Jewish encroachment.
An Israeli army spokesperson told Ma’an that a Palestinian attempted to stab Israeli soldiers stationed near the junction, who responded by opening fire on the alleged assailant.
Many of the Palestinian attackers have been young people, including teenagers. “If it were up to them, there would be suicide bombings and gun attacks here every day”, Yaalon told Israel Radio.
Israel firmly rejects accusations that it has used excessive force.
Previously in December, Wallström said she condemned the stabbing attacks by Palestinians against Israelis that took place amid four-month violence in Israeli cities but asserted the response was far too tough.
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Ties between Israel and Sweden plummeted after Stockholm recognised the Palestinian state shortly after Wallstrom’s centre-left Social Democrats won a parliamentary election in 2014.
