Poland’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned Israeli Ambassador Yacov Livne over his comments on the deadly Israeli strike that killed seven aid workers for World Central Kitchen, including one Polish citizen, Damian Soból.
During the meeting, Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Andrzej Szejna gave a note of protest to the ambassador, according to the Polish Press Agency.
The diplomatic row comes days after Spanish-American chef and restaurateur José Andrés, the founder of the World Central Kitchen NGO, said that his employees had coordinated with the Israeli military and had clearly marked the convoy as humanitarian aid workers in Gaza.
The Israeli government has alleged the attack was a “mistake,” a claim which was repeated by Ambassador Livne in an interview aired on the YouTube channel Kanal Zero Wednesday. But the diplomat went further, blasting the reaction to the strike in Poland, noting that the criticism is just the work of “extreme right and left in Poland” trying to blame Israel for “intentional murder.”
“The extreme right and left in Poland accuse Israel of intentional murder in yesterday's attack,” he said.
Livne added that “anti-Semites will always remain anti-Semites, and Israel will remain a democratic Jewish State that fights for its right to exist. Also for the good of the entire Western world.”
Polish President Andrzej Duda called his comments “outrageous” and said Livne was “the biggest problem for the state of Israel in relations with Poland,” according to the the Polish Press Agency.
“The Israeli authorities behave in a subdued manner, and unfortunately their ambassador in Poland is unable to maintain their sensitivity. It significantly hinders our mutual relations,” Duda said on social media.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski also lambasted the ambassador during a call with Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz, according to TVP World.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said he believed Livne should have responded with a “human apology” instead, adding that the response from Livne was testing the Polish-Israel relationship.
“The vast majority of Poles showed full solidarity with Israel after the Hamas attack. Today you are putting this solidarity to a really hard test. The tragic attack on volunteers and your reaction arouse understandable anger,” Tusk said in a social media post.
After he was summoned Friday, Livne said on social media that he expressed his condolences and apology during the meeting.
“I repeated my personal deep sorrow and sincere apologies over the tragic death of World Central Kitchen workers, including the Polish citizen Mr. Damian Soból,” he said.
Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Andrzej Szejna confirmed that it will not be expelling Livne following the meeting.
Szejna told Livne that Poland wants the victim’s regional prosecution service to be allowed to participate in a criminal procedure against the Israeli soldiers responsible for Soból's death. Poland has also demanded compensation from Israel for the victim’s family.
The meeting appears to have smoothed over some tension between Poland and Israel, but the Polish Foreign Ministry on Friday accused Israel’s investigation into the attack on the aid convoy of being “unsatisfactory.”
“We also demand access to all information to ensure that the matter is satisfactorily resolved,” Szejna said. “I want to strongly emphasize that the research and information [about the attack on the aid convoy in Gaza – TVP World] so far are unsatisfactory, but I perceived this meeting and the position of the Israeli ambassador as a change of tone.”
