“Mr. Scholz is outraged and appalled by the indescribable statements of Mahmoud Abbas. The relativization of the Holocaust is completely unacceptable and to do so on German soil is unforgivable,” noted Steffen Hebstreit
The government representative Stephen Hebstreit took over today full responsibility for last night’s episode in the chancellerywhen Chancellor Olaf Solz left the Palestinian president’s comments unanswered Mahmoud Abbas on Israel’s “50 holocausts” against the Palestinianscausing a storm of reactions.
“I’m very sorry (….) I wasn’t careful enough and I didn’t react quickly enough. This was my mistake and for that I must take responsibility“, said the government representative a while ago, who last night, during the joint statements of the two leaders, hastened to declare the press conference adjourned after four questions, according to the program, without giving the chancellor a chance to comment on the statements of Mr. Abbas. As he left, Mr. Soltz pointed out to him, Mr. Hebstreit said, that he was in a bit of a hurry and that he wished he had said more.
“Chancellor regrets not being able to intervene a second time at the press conference and react differently to the allegations” of the Palestinian leader, but he did so very quickly afterward, said the spokesman, who was bombarded with related questions during a regular editors’ briefing today. Mr. Soltz “he is outraged and appalled by the indescribable statements of Mahmud Abbas. The relativization of the Holocaust is completely unacceptable and to do so on German soil is unforgivableadded Mr. Hebstreit.
But even before Mr. Abbas’ controversial statement, the difference of opinion between the two leaders had become apparent. When the Palestinian leader referred to “apartheid system” from Israel, Mr. Soltz replied that he does not adopt the term “apartheid” and does not consider the situation to be described that way, while he also opposed the full inclusion of the Palestinians in the United Nations, where they currently have observer status.
Earlier today the head of the Palestinian delegation in Berlin was summoned to the chancellery where, according to the government spokesman, he was informed “beyond any doubt” of the German government’s position. “Chancellor expects Mr Abbas to unreservedly acknowledge the uniqueness of the Holocaust“, pointed out Stephen Hebstreit and noted that “Palestinian president’s derailment casts a dark shadow over Germany’s relations with the Palestinian Authority». The chancellor is expected to have a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Yair Lapid later in the day, in order to “to speak to him directly about the incident,” the spokesman said, adding that the federal government “places the utmost importance on a close and trusting relationship with Israel.”.
Previously the head of the Bundestag’s Defense Committee Marie-Agnes Strack-Zimmermann (FDP) had directly questioned Mr. Hebstreit’s suitability for the position of government representative, as, as she told Der Spiegel magazine, “the fact that he ended up like this the press conference, before the chancellor can even take a breath, shows a lack of political instinct.” “He has damaged his boss and the country and the question has to be asked if he is the right man for the jobMs. Strack-Zimmerman added.
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