Washington summoned Malaysia’s ambassador, Mohamed Shahrul Ikram Yaakob, to protest Kuala Lumpur’s stance toward Israel. Malaysia, a Muslim-majority nation in Southeast Asia that does not maintain relations with Israel, recently deported an American citizen who also holds Israeli citizenship—sparking American outrage.
1+The man was part of a digital nomad community established in Malaysia with members from around the world. News of an Israeli citizen’s participation in the Malaysia-based community spread on social media and reached the foreign minister—who expelled the Israeli-American from the country.
Despite the summons, the Malaysian ambassador in Washington informed the U.S. State Department that Malaysia’s longstanding policy of not recognizing Israel is nothing new: “This has always been Malaysia’s policy. Our immigration policy does not recognize Israel or the Zionist entity. This has always been our position.”
1+Eight members of Congress then sent a letter to Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressing their outrage over the Malaysian prime minister’s plan to locate and immediately deport any Israeli found in his country. They urged the State Department to reassess security and economic relations between the U.S. and Malaysia. They also called on the State Department to freeze funding for the International Military Education and Training program, which provides professional American training to Malaysian military personnel, unless the decision is reversed within 15 days.