German Foreign Ministry defends its ambassador in Tel Aviv against Israeli criticism

By Oliver Towfigh Nia

BERLIN (AA) – The German Foreign Ministry defended its ambassador in Tel Aviv on Monday against Israeli government criticism for attending a Supreme Court hearing on the controversial judicial reform in the Jewish state.

"It is of course fundamentally the case that following relevant domestic political proceedings, especially if they are still public, is a completely normal part of every diplomat's job," Foreign Ministry spokesman Christian Wagner said at a press briefing in Berlin, referring to Ambassador Steffen Seibert's attendance at the apex court hearing on judicial reforms last Tuesday.

Wagner, however, described Seibert’s attendance at such an event as “quite a normal practice.”

According to Israeli media, the German ambassador was accused of interfering in the country's judicial affairs. Some media outlets reported that Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen lodged a formal complaint against Seibert in Berlin.

However, Wagner said, "The Foreign Office has not received any complaints from Israel."

According to media reports confirmed by the Israeli representative familiar with the details, the official complaint was sent to the German Foreign Ministry through Israeli Ambassador in Berlin Ron Prosor.

When asked if the ambassador had contacted Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock directly, Wagner responded, "I am not aware of that."

Baerbock is currently in New York for the UN General Assembly, which began on Monday.

The German ambassador to Israel had previously been criticized by Israel after attending an alternative memorial event for Israeli and Palestinian families as a private citizen.

They remembered their relatives who had been killed in the conflict on both sides. In June, some ultra-right demonstrators loudly protested in front of the ambassador's residence in Herzliya and disrupted an event that was taking place there.