At the direction of Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, Foreign Ministry Director-General Eden Bar Tal summoned Belarus Ambassador Yuri Yaroshevich for an urgent reprimand Wednesday following recent statements by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko that sparked outrage in Jerusalem.
During the meeting, Bar Tal made clear that Israel views Lukashenko’s remarks with utmost severity. The Belarusian leader accused a “Jewish lobby” and drew comparisons between the horrors of the Holocaust and the Israel Defense Forces’ operations against terror organizations in Gaza.
The Foreign Ministry director-general called the statements antisemitic and infuriating, saying they desecrate the memory of the Holocaust and its victims. He emphasized that Israel categorically rejects any attempt to equate the extermination of the Jewish people during World War II with Israel’s war against jihadist terror.
The uproar erupted after Lukashenko attacked Israel in an interview with Al Arabiya, claiming its actions in Gaza have damaged its international standing. “What Holocaust can the Israelis talk about?” he said, accusing Israel of widespread harm to the civilian population. He also claimed the United States has the ability to force Israel to change its policies and that there is no military solution to Middle East conflicts.
Lukashenko has served as president of Belarus since 1994 and is one of the world’s longest-serving heads of state. In recent years he has faced sharp criticism from Western nations and human rights organizations over allegations of suppressing political opponents and restricting civil liberties.
Israeli officials stressed that invoking conspiracies about a “Jewish lobby” is unacceptable antisemitic language that has no place in international discourse.