Irish President Michael Higgins accuses Israel of leaking the full text of a letter he sent to Iran’s new president as he was sworn in in July, an allegation rejected and denounced by the Israeli embassy.
The July 11 letter congratulating Masoud Pezeshkian — whose existence was made public on July 26 by Ireland’s Foreign Ministry but whose full text was then published online on July 29 — drew backlash for its friendly nature; its claim that Iran will play a “crucial role” in achieving Middle East stability, cooperation and “peaceful resolving of disputes”; and its omission of Tehran’s major role in malign activity and violence against its own people and across the region.
It was slammed by officials including Mark Dubowitz, CEO of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, and by Israel’s embassy in Dublin. Ambassador Dana Erlich was recalled in May as Jerusalem protested Ireland’s recognition of a Palestinian state.
During a visit to the UN headquarters in New York, Higgins is asked by reporters Sunday about the issue, defending the letter as “standard” and saying it stressed the need for peace and diplomacy.
He then claims that it was the Israeli embassy itself that leaked the letter, without providing evidence and while acknowledging he doesn’t know how the letter was allegedly obtained by the Jewish state.
“Why don’t you ask where it came from?… Where the criticism came from and how the letter was circulated and by whom and for what purpose?” Higgins is quoted as saying by The Independent, then adding: “It was circulated from the Israeli embassy.”
The embassy reacts by saying on X that since the war began with Hamas’s October 7 massacres, “Israel has been subjected to a high level of malicious statements and accusations that have often manifested as incitement to hatred.”
Regarding Higgins’ remarks, the mission says: “This baseless accusation is highly inflammatory and potentially slanderous and the embassy rejects it completely.
“The fact remains that the letter was written and therefore it is the burden of the author to defend its content, which did not mention the threat Iran poses in the region, that it calls for Israel’s destruction, that it arms and funds terrorist organisations like Hamas and Hezbollah, not to mention the violations of human rights against its own citizens.”
Read the full statement from the Embassy pic.twitter.com/HTGadp4oBN
— Israel in Ireland (@IsraelinIreland) September 22, 2024
Source » timesofisrael